LINCOLN  AND 
THE  RAILROADS 


-   .:    ;    -     - 


LINCOLN  ROOM 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


MEMORIAL 

the  Class  of  1901 

founded  by 

HARLAN  HOYT  HORNER 

and 

HENRIETTA  CALHOUN  HORNER 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign 


http://www.archive.org/details/lincolnrailroadsOOstar 


Courtesy,  Baltimore  <6   Ohio  Railroad   Co. 

(From    oil   painting   by    Herbert    D.    Stitt) 

president  Lincoln's  arrival  at  Washington 

In  striking  contrast  to  the  crowded  station  in  his  home  town  of 
Springfield  and  the  cheering  crowds  along  the  way,  was  the  arrival 
of  the  President-elect  at  the  Capital.  Rumors  of  a  threatened  assas- 
sination at  Baltimore  caused  a  last  moment  change  of  plans,  and 
Lincoln  slipped  quietly  through  that  city  arriving  in  Washington  in 
the  gray  of  early  morning,  unheralded. 


LINCOLN#//fc 
RAILROADS 

lA^Biographical  Study  by 
JOHN  W.  STARR,  JR. 

Author  OJ  &  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  LICOLNIANA, 

Lincoln's  last  day,  Etc. 
Illustrated 


DODD,  MEAD  &  COMPANY 


NEW  YORK 


MCMXXVII 


Copyright.  1927 
By  DODD,  MEAD  AND  COMPANY,  Inc. 


PRINTED    IN    U.    S.   A. 


MANUFACTURED     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES     OF     AMERICA 
BY    THE    VAIL-BALLOU     PRESS,     INC.,     BINGHAMTON,    N.     Y. 


4U7U3  L,wei 


TO    MY    DAUGHTERS 

iEisttjwr  ffiumte?  §>tarr 

AND 

fHariatma  S>iarr 


PREFACE 

Amid  the  voluminous  literature  concerning  Lincoln — 
just  how  voluminous  only  those  of  us  who  have  spent 
many  years  in  the  collecting  of  Lincolniana  can  appre- 
ciate— there  is  no  concrete  document,  aside  from  the 
present  one,  which  deals  with  the  man  in  his  relation  to 
the  railroads.  Yet  the  facts  of  his  life  furnish  many 
curious  parallels  with  them. 

American  railroads  are  just  one  hundred  years  old. 
The  first  feeble  lines  were  pushing  their  uncertain  way 
across  the  Alleghenies  and  into  the  Middle  West  when 
the  gangly  young  "rail-splitter"  was  growing  to  man- 
hood. As  a  green  legislator  in  Illinois  he  helped  to  pro- 
mote the  vicious  legislation  which  went  into  the  laws  of 
the  state,  for  excessive  and  unwise  railroad  building. 
As  a  rising  lawyer  some  of  his  best  clients  were  the  rail- 
roads; although  at  times  he  appeared  against  them. 
He  "chalked  his  hat,"  or  traveled  on  passes  habitually. 
He  was  tempted  with  an  offer  from  the  New  York  Cen- 
tral, which,  if  accepted,  would  have  changed  his  entire 
political  career.  He  was  a  guiding  spirit  behind  the  first 
line  to  the  Far  West — the  Union  Pacific — and  he 
helped  determine  its  gauge,  which  became  the  standard 
gauge  of  the  country.  In  the  famous  Rock  Island 
Bridge  case,  he  enunciated  a  right  for  common  carriers 
which  has  become  an  accepted  doctrine. 

All  these  and  many  other  curious  and  out-of-the-way 

vii 


viii  PREFACE 

facts  are  the  excuse  and  reason  for  the  present  book. 
The  author  believes  that  it  will  throw  new  light  on  both 
Lincoln  and  the  history  of  transportation.  If  this  result 
has  been  achieved,  the  author  can  by  no  means  claim 
exclusive  credit.  He  has  been  aided  at  every  turn,  not 
only  by  the  biographers  who  have  gone  before,  but  also 
by  the  railroad  companies  who  have  cheerfully  answered 
innumerable  questions  and  placed  at  his  disposal  their 
files  and  correspondence.  Rare  pictures  scattered 
through  the  text  are  likewise  due  to  their  cooperation. 
The  author  takes  this  means  of  making  partial  acknowl- 
edgment of  his  indebtedness  to  all  those  who  have  con- 
tributed to  make  this  book  possible. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  text,  particular  reference 
should  be  made  to  the  various  officials  of  the  different 
lines  under  investigation,  especially  J.  G.  Drennan, 
Esq.,  General  Attorney  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad 
Company ;  Receiver  and  former  President  W.  G.  Bierd, 
of  the  Chicago  and  Alton  Railroad  Company;  and 
President  J.  E.  Gorman  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island 
and  Pacific  Railway  Company,  all  of  which  roads 
Abraham  Lincoln  served  as  attorney ;  to  the  New  York 
Sun  for  permission  to  reprint  largely  from  copyrighted 
material;  to  Dr.  L.  D.  Carman,  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
who  has  never  failed  when  called  upon  to  contribute  his 
share  of  time  and  labor;  to  Mr.  Jesse  W.  Weik,  of 
Greencastle,  Ind. ;  and  to  my  mother  for  her  kindly 
interest  and  helpful  suggestions. 

For  the  illustrations,  acknowledgment  should  be  made 
of  the  courtesy  extended  by  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad ; 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad;  Chicago,  Rock  Island 
and  Pacific  Railway;  Norfolk  and  Western  Railway; 


PREFACE  ix 

Wabash  Railway;  Louisville  and  Nashville  Railroad; 
Chicago  and  Alton  Railroad;  Cleveland,  Cincinnati, 
Chicago,  and  St.  Louis  Railway;  Boston  and  Maine 
Railroad;  Illinois  Central  Railroad;  Union  Pacific 
Railroad ;  New  York  Central  Railroad ;  Delaware  and 
Hudson  Company;  Mr.  Dwight  C.  Morgan,  of  the 
Pittsburgh  and  Shawmut  Railroad;  Mr.  Frederick  H. 
Meserve,  of  New  York;  and  Miss  Ida  M.  Tarbell  and 
the  Macmillan  Company,  for  permission  to  reprint  a 
map  showing  the  railroad  projection  authorized  by  the 
1836-37  session  of  the  Illinois  state  legislature. 

Finally  I  must  express  my  appreciation  of  the  edi- 
torial services  of  Mr.  J.  Walker  McSpadden,  whose  aid 
in  the  way  of  advice  and  revision  of  text  is  gratefully 
acknowledged. 

J.  W.  S.  Jr. 
Millersburg,  Pennsylvania 
April  1, 1927 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I     The  Rise  of  the  Railroads 1 

II     Lincoln's  Life  Before  the  Day  of  Railroads     6 

III  Lincoln's  First  Interest  in  Transportation     12 

IV  Lincoln    and    the    Internal    Improvement 

Follies    of    1837 18 

V     The   First   Railroad   in   Illinois    ....      32 

VI     Lincoln  and  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad     40 

VII     First  Journeys  to  the  East 46 

VIII     Lincoln  as  Attorney  for  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral    57 

IX  Lincoln's  Largest  Railroad  Fee   ....  73 

X     Other  Railroad  Cases 80 

XI     The  Rock  Island  Bridge  Case 92 

XII  Lincoln  as  Opposing  Counsel  to  Railroads  .  117 

XIII     Lincoln's  Offer  from  the  New  York  Cen- 
tral    126 

XIV  The    Lincoln-Douglas    Debates    .      .      .      .132 

XV  Lincoln's  Travels  During  the  Fifties   .      .150 

XVI  Another  Trip  East  and  Its  Results  .      .      .    160 

XVII  Lincoln's  Last  Visit  to  His  Foster-Mother  .    164 

XVIII  The  Journey  to  Washington  in  1861  .      .      .   172 

XIX  Lincoln  and  the  Union  Pacific   ....    194 

XX  President  Lincoln's  Travels 226 

xi 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTEE  PAGE 

XXI     The  Journey  to  Gettysburg  ......  246 

XXII     The  Last  Journey 265 

Notes 283 

Bibliography 299 

Index; 313 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

President  Lincoln's  arrival  at  Washington      .       Frontispiece 


FACING 
PAGtf 


The  Lincoln  birthplace  cabin 10 

Early  railroad  map  of  Illinois 20 

Traveling  by  canal-boat 36 

Legal  papers  written  by  Lincoln    ...     60  and  following 

Papers    in    Lincoln's    suit    against    the    Illinois    Central 

74  and  following 

Further  papers  in  Lincoln's  lawsuit     .      .     78  and  following 

When  Lincoln  "chalked  his  hat" 82 

Engine  and  train,  Great  Western  Railroad    ....  86 

The  "New  Hampshire" 90 

"And  who  is  Abraham  Lincoln?"  asked  Farnam  ...  94 

The  bridge  in  the  case 106 

First  locomotive  operated  in  Iowa 114 

Erastus  Corning 128 

Lincoln  Mementoes 136 

Early  portraits  of  Lincoln 158 

Where  Lincoln  bade  farewell  to  his  home  folks   .      .      .174 

The   "L.   H.    Tupper" 186 

General  Grenville   M.   Dodge 202 

A  letter  of  recommendation 210 

Other   rare   railroad  items 216 

Grant's  military  railroad  in  Virginia 234 

Photographs  of  Lincoln 240 

Locomotive  used  in  1855  and  the  Lincoln  "Funeral  Car"  .  250 

Back  in  Illinois 266 

Time  table  of  the  "Funeral  Train" 274 

xiii 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 


CHAPTER   I 

THE  RISE  OF  THE  RAILROADS 

To  the  traveler  of  to-day  the  luxuries  of  modern 
transportation  are  such  a  familiar  story,  that  it  is  dif- 
ficult for  him  to  visualize  a  time  when  the  railroad  and 
the  steamship  were  unknown.  And  yet  they  are  the  prod- 
ucts of  the  last  century,  their  larger  development  hav- 
ing been  realized  within  the  last  fifty  years.  It  was  not 
until  after  the  Civil  War  in  America  that  the  steel 
highways  finally  completed  their  course  from  the  East 
to  the  West. 

The  first  growth  of  American  railroads — their  ad- 
olescent period,  one  might  say, — was  coincident  with 
the  formative  years  of  our  typical  American,  Abraham 
Lincoln.  His  fight  for  an  education  and  a  place  in  life, 
in  the  great  untrodden  spaces  of  the  Middle  West,  af- 
fords many  curious  parallels  and  contacts  with  this 
new  and  then  untried  method  of  transportation. 

When  Lincoln  was  born  in  the  little  log  cabin  near 
Hodgenville,  Kentucky,  on  February  12,  1809,  the 
steam  engine  was  likewise  in  its  infancy.  Not  merely  in 
the  wildernesses  of  Kentucky,  Indiana,  and  Illinois, 
where  his  early  days  were  spent,  was  such  a  contrivance 
unknown,  but  even  in  civilized  Boston,  New  York,  and 
Philadelphia,  people  still  traveled  by  stagecoach  and 
canal-boat. 

The  first  active  experiments  with  steam  were  being 
carried  on  in  England,  in  Lincoln's  birth-year.  As  far 


2  LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

back  as  1773  the  new  motive  power  had  intrigued  the 
English,  beginning  with  the  discoveries  of  James  Watt. 
But  in  America  the  colonies  were  then  talking  liberty 
and  the  right  to  manage  their  own  affairs.  Mere  scien- 
tific experiments  did  not  greatly  interest  us  during  the 
stormy  days  of  our  Revolution  when  we  had  other 
things  to  think  about  than  railroads.  Following  Watt 
came  Trevithick,  Blenkinsop,  and  the  great  Stephen- 
son who,  about  the  turn  of  the  century,  actually  placed 
the  first  clumsy  locomotives  upon  rails.  But  it  was  not 
until  the  year  1821  that  a  short  railway  was  actually 
opened  for  traffic  in  England. 

Meanwhile  our  American  inventors  had  not  been 
idle.  Oliver  Evans,  one  of  the  very  first  of  these,  made 
models  of  a  steam  carriage  as  early  as  the  year  1804. 
Colonel  John  Stevens,  of  Hoboken,  New  Jersey, 
strongly  advocated  the  building  of  a  railroad  system 
for  our  young  Republic  and,  a  few  years  later,  con- 
structed a  successful  locomotive  which  he  ran  upon  a 
half-mile  track  on  his  own  estate.  Then  Peter  Cooper, 
of  New  York,  made  a  diminutive  machine  which  he 
called  "Tom  Thumb."  Its  boiler  was  little  larger  than 
one  used  for  boiling  clothes,  and  it  had  a  single  cylinder 
of  three  and  one-half  inches  diameter — but  it  ran!  On 
one  trial  trip  before  an  amazed  crowd  it  pulled  two 
coaches  carrying  forty  passengers,  and  at  a  speed  of 
eighteen  miles  an  hour. 

Other  early,  successful  locomotives  of  American 
make  were  the  "Best  Friend,"  operated  in  South  Caro- 
lina, the  "De  Witt  Clinton,"  in  New  York,  and  "Old 
Ironsides,"  the  first  of  the  long  line  of  locomotives  built 
by   Baldwin,    of   Philadelphia.    At   the    Sesquicenten- 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  RAILROADS  3 

nial  Exposition  of  1926,  "Old  Ironsides"  still  stood 
proudly  exhibiting  her  seven  and  one-half  tons  in  front 
of  the  ponderous  three-hundred-ton  giants  of  the  pres- 
ent day. 

Most  of  the  early  experiments  in  railroading,  both 
in  this  country  and  England,  were  very  crude,  the 
horse  furnishing  the  motive  power.  To  Gridley  Bryant 
is  given  the  credit  for  having  operated  the  first  one  of 
this  nature  in  the  United  States  which  was  a  success. 
He  built  a  tramway,  in  1826,  to  haul  granite  in  Massa- 
chusetts used  in  the  erection  of  the  Bunker  Hill  Monu- 
ment. Two  years  later,  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Com- 
pany, which  had  been  organized  to  develop  some  mines 
in  northeastern  Pennsylvania,  realized  that  their  chief 
problem  was  transportation.  They  had  heard  of  the 
locomotives  made  by  George  Stephenson,  over  in  Eng- 
land, and  accordingly  sent  Horatio  Allen  there  to  in- 
vestigate the  first  line  then  being  constructed.  He  re- 
turned with  enthusiastic  reports  and,  better  still,  with 
the  promise  of  four  locomotives,  one  of  which  was  built 
by  Stephenson  himself.  This  was  the  famous  "Stour- 
bridge Lion,"  the  earliest  locomotive  to  see  actual  serv- 
ice in  America. 

The  late  twenties  and  the  early  thirties — just  a  cen- 
tury ago — saw  determined  efforts  made  upon  the  part 
of  several  companies  to  launch  railway  systems.  But 
they  faced  peculiar  difficulties,  not  merely  of  engineer- 
ing but  also  of  popular  opinion.  The  railroads  were 
looked  upon  by  most  people,  particularly  by  the  early 
legislators,  as  only  improved  common  highways.  They 
were  classed  with  the  macadamized  turnpike,  and  their 
first  charters  were  patterned  after  the  turnpike  char- 


4  LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ters.  Their  use  was  not  to  be  limited  to  the  holding  com- 
pany, but  was  open  to  any  person  who  could  comply 
with  the  rules  as  to  weight  allowed,  style  of  cars,  and 
form  of  wheels.  Further,  the  gauges  were  of  varying 
width  for  different  roads.  The  attitude  of  these  early 
lawmakers  on  the  subject  is  of  special  interest,  as  Lin- 
coln himself  served  in  the  Illinois  legislature  at  the 
pivotal  time  when  the  first  railroads  were  penetrating 
the  Alleghenies  on  their  way  to  the  Mississippi. 

The  first  roads  found  their  most  earnest  antagonists 
to  be  the  stage  lines,  the  turnpike  and  bridge  compan- 
ies, and  those  interested  in  canal  development.  That 
was  the  heyday  of  canals;  people  in  some  states  were 
canal  crazy;  ditches  were  being  dug  everywhere  and 
exclusive  carrying  privileges  obtained  between  certain 
towns.  Naturally  their  companies  looked  with  disfavor 
upon  this  clumsy  toy  which  puffed  along  tracks  and 
tried  to  divert  commerce  from  its  great  common  carrier 
— water!  A  canal  line  between  Boston  and  Lowell 
sought  an  injunction  in  the  courts  to  prevent  the  com- 
petition of  the  railroad. 

Among  other  forces  arrayed  against  steam  should  be 
mentioned  the  farming  element,  who  were  fearful  of 
losing  the  revenue  derived  from  the  sale  of  horses,  hay 
and  grain  to  the  stage-coach  lines,  the  canal  lines,  and 
the  innkeepers  along  the  way.  Some  of  the  good  people 
were  apprehensive  of  the  innovation  from  moral  rea- 
sons, and  one  little  village  in  Connecticut  went  so  far 
as  to  file  a  remonstrance  with  the  directors  of  a  pro- 
jected route,  asking  that  the  peace  and  quiet  of  their 
orderly  village  should  not  be  disturbed  by  steam  cars, 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  RAILROADS  5 

nor  by  the  strangers  who  would  thus  be  rudely  dumped 
into  their  midst. 

However,  with  these  and  other  natural  difficulties  of 
steam  transportation  in  its  pioneer  days  the  boy  Lin- 
coln had  nothing  to  do.  The  steam  engine  was  scarcely 
described  at  all  in  the  few  books  which  he  borrowed,  as 
a  gangly  youth,  and  read  laboriously  by  the  light  of 
a  pitch-pine  fire.  But  as  the  Lincoln  family  journeyed 
here  and  yonder  in  the  mid- Western  wilderness,  urged 
on  by  the  restless  spirit  of  Tom  Lincoln,  they  began  to 
hear  vague  rumors  of  the  iron  horse. 

"I  hearn  tell,"  said  one  farmer,  punctuating  his  re- 
marks by  tobacco  juice,  "as  how  the  contraption  runs 
on  rails — yes,  sir,  the  ordinary  road  not  being  good 
enough  fer  hit.  They  build  a  fire  and  bile  some  water, 
and  blest  if  the  derned  thing  don't  begin  to  wheeze  an' 
snort  an',  purty  soon  if  she  don't  blow  up  she  starts 
rampagin9  along  them  tracks!  I  call  that  flyin'  in  the 
face  of  Providence,  I  do !" 

In  some  such  way  as  this  must  the  boy  Lincoln  have 
gotten  his  first  impressions  of  the  great  common  car- 
rier whose  early  history  was  to  touch  his  own  at  so 
many  points,  and  whose  twin  rails  stretching  on  and 
on  became  to  him  a  sign  and  symbol  of  the  manifest 
destiny  of  his  later  years. 


CHAPTER   n 

LINCOLN'S  LIFE  BEFORE  THE  DAY 
OF  RAILROADS 

When  Lincoln  was  about  three  years  old,  his  father 
was  seized  with  one  of  his  periodical  attacks  of  wander- 
lust and  moved  from  the  shack  near  Hodgenville  to  bet- 
ter farming  land  on  Knob  Creek,  some  fifteen  miles 
away.  Moving  was  a  simple  process  with  him,  so  far  as 
household  goods  were  concerned,  but  the  Kentucky 
roads  were  little  better  than  trails,  and  the  lumbering, 
springless  wagon  bumped  painfully  along  for  hours 
over  the  rough  land  before  they  reached  their  destina- 
tion. 

Here  at  Knob  Creek  they  lived  and  farmed  after  a 
fashion  until  the  fall  of  1816,  when  Tom  heard  of  a 
still  better  place  "just  around  the  corner,"  and  decided 
to  move  there.  It  was  in  the  newly-admitted  state  of 
Indiana  where  plenty  of  land  was  ready  and  waiting 
for  settlers,  and  crops  grew  while  you  waited.  He  told 
all  this  jubilantly  to  poor,  patient  Nancy  Hanks  Lin- 
coln, his  wife,  his  nine  year  old  daughter,  and  the  large- 
eyed  boy  of  seven,  and  made  ready  to  move  on  without 
more  ado.  He  sold  his  Knob  Creek  farm  for  a  little  cash 
and  some  barrels  of  whiskey — as  the  latter  were  a  ready 
means  of  barter  between  settlers  and  Indians — put  his 
small  worldly  effects  upon  a  raft,  and  floated  down  the 
Ohio  on  the  first  leg  of  his  journey  to  his  new  home. 

The  further  progress  of  the  little  family  up  into 

6 


BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF  RAILROADS       7 

Indiana  was  made  partly  by  water,  and  partly  over- 
land. It  was  arduous  in  either  case.  The  bogs  were  fre- 
quent and  treacherous,  the  river  currents  uncertain. 
Once  their  boat  capsized  and  their  furniture  went  into 
the  river,  but  fortunately  into  shallow  water.  The  last 
stage  of  their  journey  was  through  virgin  forest,  to  the 
site  of  their  new  home  near  Little  Pigeon  Creek,  in 
what  is  now  Spencer  County.  During  their  long  jour- 
ney of  nearly  one  hundred  miles  Abe  and  his  father 
slept  in  the  open  on  fair  nights.  If  it  rained  they  took 
refuge  under  the  wagon.  It  was  a  painful  journey  of 
many  days.  To-day  as  one  makes  his  smooth  progress  in 
Pullman  trains  over  the  same  country,  a  hundred  miles 
is  as  nothing — a  distance  to  be  traversed  while  one  is 
eating  a  leisurely  lunch ! 

The  years  of  hardship  spent  by  this  pioneer  family 
in  Indiana  are  a  familiar  story,  and  not  unlike  that  of 
many  another  such  home  in  the  wilderness.  Nancy 
Hanks  Lincoln  did  not  survive  long  enough  to  enjoy 
even  the  ordinary  comforts  of  a  home,  but  succumbed 
within  a  few  months.  Tom  married  again — a  capable 
widow  with  children  of  her  own — and  the  combined 
household  moved  sturdily  forward. 

For  fourteen  years  they  lived  here — a  long  time  for 
the  restless  Tom — and  when  young  Abe  was  just  turn- 
ing twenty-one  they  decided  to  "pull  up  stakes"  again 
and  move  over  into  Illinois.  Those  fourteen  years  on  the 
Little  Pigeon  had  seen  the  spindly  youth  shooting  up 
like  a  sycamore.  From  the  age  of  eight  or  nine  he  had 
begun  to  swing  his  axe  in  the  clearings.  For  a  time  he 
seemed  all  arms  and  legs,  but  he  was  as  hard  as  nails — 
all  bone,  sinew,  and  muscle,  and  a  "holy  terror"  at 


8  LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

wrestling.  At  eighteen  he  had  reached  his  full  height 
of  six  feet,  four  inches. 

It  was  about  this  time — the  summer  of  1826 — that 
he  got  a  job  as  ferryman  on  the  Ohio,  boating  passen- 
gers across  the  stream  at  the  mouth  of  Anderson's 
Creek.  The  river  steamers  were  just  then  beginning  to 
ply  on  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  and  as  he  poled  his 
craft  back  and  forth  he  would  watch  these  big,  un- 
gainly craft  with  eager  eyes.  It  was  his  first  direct  con- 
tact with  the  giant,  Steam.  Flatboats,  however,  contin- 
ued to  be  the  popular  medium  for  shipping  produce, 
and  the  one  great  adventure  of  those  days  was  to  float 
down  the  great  rivers  clear  to  New  Orleans  with  goods, 
and  dispose  of  them  there.  Then  one  could  return  by 
steamer,  or  overland  by  horseback.  Many  a  farmer  was 
bitten  with  this  idea,  and  Tom  Lincoln  made  at  least 
one  trip  to  the  southern  port.  Abe  doubtless  heard 
many  stories  about  it. 

When  the  latter  was  nineteen  he  was  working  for  a 
man  named  James  Gentry,  who  outfitted  a  flatboat 
for  the  New  Orleans  trip.  This  was  loaded  with  produce 
and  placed  in  charge  of  Abe  and  Gentry's  son,  Allen. 
Their  plan  was  to  trade  at  St.  Louis  and  other  points 
along  the  river,  and  "see  the  sights." 

It  was  a  journey  of  continuous  marvel  for  the  two 
backwoodsmen.  The  ever-changing  stream,  the  small 
towns,  the  people,  the  country — all  were  like  the  open- 
ing pages  of  a  book.  It  was,  indeed,  the  book  from 
which  Lincoln  gained  most  of  his  later  wisdom.  The 
trip  itself  was  leisurely  but  not  lazy.  Their  clumsy  craft 
was  kept  to  its  course  by  two  long  sweeps,  and  at  times 
it  required  their  united  efforts  to  keep  it  clear  of  snags 


BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF  RAILROADS        9 

or  sandbars,  to  say  nothing  of  capricious  eddies,  cross- 
currents, or  rapids.  As  they  tugged  at  their  sweeps 
and  watched  some  puffing  steamer  pass  them,  they 
doubtless  nodded  their  heads  to  each  other,  and  re- 
marked: "That  is  the  life!" 

After  reaching  the  Mississippi  River  the  boys  com- 
menced their  trading,  so  that  by  the  time  they  arrived 
at  New  Orleans  the  produce  had  been  disposed  of  and 
other  commodities  received  in  exchange.  This  was  a 
journey  of  about  eighteen  hundred  miles.  The  only  in- 
cident of  the  trip  worth  recording  occurred  at  a  planta- 
tion near  Baton  Rouge,  where  the  boat  had  been  tied 
up  for  the  night.  A  party  of  negroes,  bent  on  plunder, 
had  gotten  on  board  the  craft,  when  they  were  heard 
by  the  boys,  who  quickly  grabbing  clubs  beat  off  the 
marauders.  In  the  melee  Lincoln  received  a  wound,  the 
mark  of  which  he  carried  to  his  grave. 

The  return  trip  was  made  by  steamboat — a  memo- 
rable experience  in  the  lives  of  the  two  boys. 

Early  in  1830,  Tom  Lincoln  decided  to  move  again. 
He  was  dissatisfied  with  his  surroundings,  and  rightly 
so,  for  the  country  in  which  he  had  settled  turned  out 
to  be  very  unpromising.  The  locality  was  unhealthy 
and  the  soil  unproductive.  After  a  journey  of  fifteen 
days  the  emigrants  reached  Macon  County,  Illinois.  A 
section  of  land  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Sangamon 
River,  about  ten  miles  west  of  Decatur,  was  selected, 
and  after  helping  his  father  erect  a  cabin  and  fence  in 
the  plot  of  ground,  Abraham  determined  to  strike  out 
for  himself.  He  had  now  attained  his  majority  and 
was  a  physical  giant.  Yet  we  find  him  reaching  man's 
estate  with  no  profession  and  no  trade.  His  opportuni- 


10        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ties  for  education  had  been  of  necessity  distressingly 
meager,  but  he  had  read  with  avidity  and  absorption 
anything  he  could  lay  his  hands  on,  and  thus  had  a 
rather  fair  knowledge  of  things  in  general. 

Abraham  Lincoln  left  his  father's  roof  in  March  or 
April,  1830.  That  summer  and  fall  he  worked  in  the 
neighborhood,  chiefly  as  a  farm  hand.  The  winter  of 
1830-1831  is  what  is  known  in  Illinois  history  as  the 
"Winter  of  the  Deep  Snow,"  so  that  Lincoln  could  not 
have  done  much  that  season.  Yet  he  secured  employ- 
ment for  the  coming  spring. 

A  relative  of  his,  John  Hanks,  had  been  asked  by 
Denton  Offutt,  the  leading  business  man  along  that 
portion  of  the  Sangamon,  to  take  a  flatboat  loaded  with 
provisions  and  stock  from  Beardstown,  Illinois,  to  New 
Orleans.  A  deal  was  made  whereby  Abraham  Lincoln 
and  John  Johnston,  his  step-brother,  were  to  accom- 
pany Hanks  to  assist  in  the  work. 

In  March,  when  the  snow  was  gone,  it  was  found 
that  traveling  by  land  was  almost  impossible,  due  to 
the  flooded  country.  So,  purchasing  a  large  canoe,  the 
party  of  three  embarked  on  the  Sangamon  to  meet  Off- 
utt at  Springfield.  Here  they  found  him,  but  were  in- 
formed that,  as  he  had  not  been  able  to  get  a  boat  at 
Beardstown  as  intended,  they  would  be  hired  to  hew 
down  timber  and  build  their  own  craft  for  the  jour- 
ney at  Sangamon  Town,  seven  miles  northwest  of 
Springfield.  This  was  accordingly  done,  and  on  April 
19th  the  long  journey  was  begun.  At  New  Salem,  a 
few  miles  below  Springfield,  the  boat  stuck  on  a  mill- 
dam,  but  through  young  Lincoln's  ingenuity  was  got- 
ten under  way  again. 


Courtesy,   Illinois   Central   Railroad 


THE    LINCOLN    BIRTHPLACE    CABIN 


This  rude  log  hut  in  which  Lincoln  first  saw  the  light  of  day  has  been  pre- 
served to  posterity  in  the  Lincoln  Memorial  Hall,  at  Hodgenville,  Kentucky. 


BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF  RAILROADS     11 

The  party  remained  in  New  Orleans  about  a  month. 
The  city  had  changed  in  many  respects  since  Lincoln 
had  been  there  before,  the  thing  making  the  deepest  im- 
pression upon  him  being  the  slave  market,  and  the  in- 
human way  in  which  it  was  conducted.  It  was  there 
and  then  that  "the  iron  entered  into  his  soul." 

The  long  trip  back  to  Illinois  was  made  in  the  pleas- 
ant month  of  June.  Offutt  took  a  great  liking  to  his 
tall,  awkward  boathand,  and  offered  him  work  in  his 
store  and  mill  in  the  village  of  New  Salem.  It  was  a 
lazy  sort  of  job  and  gave  Lincoln  plenty  of  time  to 
read  and  day-dream,  as  well  as  pursue  his  favorite 
study — that  of  human  nature — but  it  did  not  last  long. 
Offutt  failed  within  a  few  months,  and  his  clerk  was 
once  again  thrown  upon  his  own  resources. 

What  should  he  do?  He  was  a  man  grown,  with  an 
odd  assortment  of  knowledge  and  experience,  but  no 
special  training  for  anything.  It  is  said  that  at  one 
time  he  contemplated  turning  blacksmith.  Meanwhile 
he  did  what  odd  jobs  that  came  his  way  and  drifted, 
until  a  new  interest  began  to  beckon.  It  was  the  field 
of  politics  and,  strangely  enough,  one  of  his  first  bids 
for  public  support  was  upon  the  theme  of  railroads. 


CHAPTER  III 

LINCOLN'S  FIRST  INTEREST  IN 
TRANSPORTATION 

Lincoln's  journeys  by  water  to  New  Orleans  natu- 
rally inclined  him  to  regard  this  as  the  prime  means  of 
transportation.  He  was  an  earnest  advocate,  as  a 
young  man,  of  the  desirability  of  clearing  the  streams. 
The  Sangamon  River  which  flowed  by  his  father's  farm 
was  constantly  cluttered  with  driftwood,  and  he  saw 
that  if  this  were  only  cleared  it  would  open  up  a  natu- 
ral highway  for  many  miles. 

While  he  was  clerking  for  Off utt  many  were  the  ar- 
guments he  carried  on  with  the  farmers.  It  is  related 
that  on  one  occasion  a  candidate  for  the  state  legisla- 
ture came  through  on  a  stump-speaking  tour,  and  took 
as  his  text  this  same  theme  of  the  opening  up  of  the 
rivers.  When  he  had  ended,  one  of  his  hearers  ex- 
claimed: "You  just  ought  to  hear  our  Abe  talk  about 
it !  Git  up,  Abe,  and  make  a  speech !" 

Thus  urged,  the  tall,  ungainly  clerk  slowly  got  to  his 
feet  and  made  his  way  forward  amid  the  good-natured 
jibes  of  his  neighbors.  He  began  hesitatingly,  but  soon 
the  subject  gripped  him  and  his  words  poured  forth. 
The  laughter  was  changed  to  hearty  applause,  and  the 
campaigner  was  generous  enough  to  say:  "You  made 
a  better  speech  than  I  did,  young  fellow !" 

Lincoln  had,  in  fact,  been  quietly  preparing  himself 
for  just  such  an  opportunity.  During  his  spare  time 

12 


INTEREST  IN  TRANSPORTATION       13 

at  the  store  he  had  read  an  English  Grammar  closely 
and  had  even  practiced  speaking  aloud  to  the  sacks  in 
the  mill,  or  the  saplings  in  some  thicket  safe  from  hu- 
man ears.  The  opinion  was  gradually  forming  in  his 
mind  that  he  was  as  able  to  represent  the  constituency 
of  his  county  in  the  legislature,  as  anyone  else.  The 
consequence  was  that  in  March,  1832,  he  boldly  took 
the  first  step  in  this  direction  by  publicly  announcing 
his  candidacy. 

Under  date  of  March  9th  he  prepared  a  hand-bill 
which  was  distributed  to  the  people  of  Sangamon 
County,  in  which  he  gave  at  some  length  his  views  on 
local  matters. 

The  first  thing  upon  which  he  touched  was  the  sub- 
ject of  internal  improvements,  and  fully  three-fourths 
of  his  "Address,"  as  he  called  it,  is  devoted  to  this  topic. 
It  shows  that  he  had  begun,  at  this  early  period,  to  make 
a  study  of  transportation  problems,  but  had  not  as 
yet  progressed  to  the  point  where  he  thought  that  the 
railroad  would  be  as  profitable  an  enterprise  for  the 
young  country  as  the  navigable  waterway. 

"With  respect  to  the  County  of  Sangamon,"  he  said, 
"some  more  easy  means  of  communication  than  it  now 
possesses,  for  the  purpose  of  facilitating  the  task  of 
exporting  the  surplus  products  of  its  fertile  soil,  and 
importing  necessary  articles  from  abroad,  is  indispen- 
sably necessary.  A  meeting  has  been  held  by  the  citi- 
zens of  Jacksonville  and  the  adjacent  country,  for  the 
purpose  of  deliberating  and  inquiring  into  the  expedi- 
ency of  constructing  a  railroad  from  some  eligible 
point  on  the  Illinois  River,  through  the  town  of  Jack- 
sonville, in  Morgan  County,  to  the  town  of  Springfield, 


14        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

in  Sangamon  County.  This  is,  indeed,  a  very  desirable 
object.  No  other  improvement  that  reason  will  justify 
us  in  hoping  for  can  equal  in  utility  the  railroad.  It  is  a 
never-failing  source  of  communication  between  the 
places  of  business  remotely  situated  from  each  other. 
Upon  the  railroad  the  regular  progress  of  commercial 
intercourse  is  not  interrupted  by  either  high  or  low 
water,  or  freezing  weather,  which  are  the  principal  diffi- 
culties that  render  our  future  hopes  of  water  communi- 
cation precarious  and  uncertain. 

"Yet,  however  desirable  an  object  the  construction  of 
a  railroad  through  our  county  may  be;  however  high 
our  imaginations  may  be  heated  at  thoughts  of  it, — 
there  is  always  a  heart-appalling  shock  accompanying 
the  amount  of  its  cost,  which  forces  us  to  shrink  from 
our  pleasing  anticipations.  The  probable  cost  of  this 
contemplated  railroad  is  estimated  at  $290,000;  the 
bare  statement  of  which,  in  my  opinion,  is  sufficient  to 
justify  the  belief  that  the  improvement  of  the  Sanga- 
mon River  is  an  object  much  better  suited  to  our  infant 
resources." 

On  the  ground  of  economy,  therefore,  Abraham  Lin- 
coln declared  for  the  improvement  of  the  Sangamon, 
rather  than  railroad  construction.  Yet  we  find  him 
in  a  later  session  of  the  Illinois  Legislature  supporting 
some  of  the  most  injudicious  and  reckless  railroad  legis- 
lation ever  enacted,  without  regard  to  finances,  rev- 
enues, or  taxes. 

Hardly  had  Lincoln  entered  the  political  arena  when 
he  was  afforded  an  opportunity  to  serve  his  state  in  an- 
other manner.  The  Governor  of  Illinois,  about  the  mid- 
dle of  April,  1832,  issued  a  call  for  volunteers  to  repel 


INTEREST  IN  TRANSPORTATION       15 

the  invasion  of  the  Indian  chief,  Black  Hawk,  in  the 
northwestern  part  of  the  state. 

Along  with  many  others,  Lincoln  enlisted,  and  was 
chosen  Captain  of  the  Sangamon  company.  They  as- 
sembled at  Beardstown,  and  after  effecting  a  sort  of 
organization,  proceeded  on  their  march.  Mustered  out 
in  May,  Captain  Lincoln  enlisted  again  as  a  private  in 
the  company  of  Captain  Elijah  lies.  Again  discharged 
in  June,  he  reenlisted  as  a  private  under  Captain  Jacob 
M.  Early.  The  volunteers  got  as  far  north  as  Wiscon- 
sin (then  called  Michigan  Territory),  when,  their  serv- 
ices no  longer  required,  the  entire  company  was  dis- 
banded. 

During  this  campaign  Lincoln  engaged  in  no  battles, 
and,  as  he  once  said,  did  not  even  see  "any  live,  fight- 
ing Indians,"  but  he  did  have  "a  good  many  bloody 
struggles  with  the  mosquitoes."  His  horse  was  stolen 
from  him  up  in  Michigan,  and  he  had  to  make  a  return 
journey  of  about  two  hundred  miles  by  foot,  horseback, 
and  canoe.  This  afforded  him  further  opportunity  to 
ruminate  upon  the  joys  of  easy  transportation. 

Arriving  back  in  New  Salem  he  took  off  his  coat 
and  entered  into  the  campaign  with  gusto.  Campaign- 
ing in  those  days  was  a  rough-and-tumble  affair  and 
free-for-all  fights  were  frequently  the  wind-up  of  de- 
bate. It  is  said  that  on  one  occasion  Lincoln  stopped 
short  in  the  midst  of  an  impassioned  outburst  for  bet- 
ter ways  of  travel,  and  jumping  down  from  the  rostrum 
made  his  way  through  the  crowd  to  the  spot  where  one 
of  his  adherents  was  getting  the  worst  of  it.  He  calmly 
separated  the  antagonists,  gave  them  a  shaking,  and 
went  back  to  finish  his  speech. 


16       LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

He  was  not  elected  in  his  maiden  campaign,  but 
doubtless  derived  some  consolation  from  the  fact  that 
out  of  three  hundred  votes  cast  in  New  Salem,  he  re- 
ceived two  hundred  and  seventy-seven. 

Turning  again  to  store-keeping,  he  entered  into 
partnership  with  William  Berry,  acting  also  as  post- 
master, but  devoting  all  his  spare  time  to  the  study  of 
law.  The  store  was  a  failure,  and  for  a  time  we  find  Lin- 
coln turning  his  talents  in  an  entirely  new  direction — 
that  of  surveying.  While  running  the  transit  and 
level  across  country,  he  had  still  further  opportunity 
to  study  the  problems  of  transportation,  both  by  water 
and  land. 

Again  in  1834  he  became  a  candidate  for  the  legis- 
lature, and  this  time  he  was  successful.  Vandalia  was 
then  the  capital,  and  one  of  the  first  projects  in  which 
the  young  legislator  distinguished  himself  was  the  re- 
moval of  the  seat  of  government  to  the  more  central 
Springfield.  He  had  made  his  first  journey  to  Van- 
dalia, of  seventy-five  miles,  in  a  jolty  stage  and  over 
impossible  roads.  So  a  little  later  when  he  and  the 
other  lawmakers  heard  of  the  approach  of  the  railroads, 
it  is  not  surprising  that  they  welcomed  them  with  open 
arms  and  unsound  legislation.  The  story  of  Illinois, 
in  this  respect,  is  not  different  from  the  other  states. 
For  a  time  they  were  "railroad  crazy." 

Lincoln  was  reelected  to  the  legislature  in  1836, 
and  in  this  year  was  also  admitted  to  the  bar.  He  spent 
the  first  years  of  his  public  life  quietly,  being  content 
to  study  the  men  with  whom  he  came  in  contact  and 
their  methods.  This  first  term,  however,  developed  his 


INTEREST  IN  TRANSPORTATION      17 

self-possession  and  assertion  to  such  a  degree  that  he 
was  able  thereafter  to  cope  with  others  in  all  the  prom- 
inent legislation  of  the  day.  He  had  earned  his  spurs, 
and  instead  of  the  shambling  youth  was  now  Mr.  Lin- 
coln, seasoned  legislator  and  lawyer. 


CHAPTER   IV 

LINCOLN  AND  THE  INTERNAL  IM- 
PROVEMENT FOLLIES  OF  1837 

When  the  first  session  of  the  Tenth  General  Assembly 
of  Illinois  convened  at  Vandalia,  then  the  capital  of 
the  state,  in  December,  1836,  it  found  the  country 
entering  the  throes  of  what  has  since  been  termed  the 
"internal  improvement  follies  of  1837."  This  period 
was  made  memorable  by  the  reckless  policy  of  various 
states  in  the  question  of  internal  improvements,  and 
the  unsound  financial  policy  pursued.  After  the  orgy 
of  unwise  expenditures  had  passed,  many  of  the  states 
found  themselves  in  a  bankrupt  condition.  Such  was 
the  case  with  the  great  eastern  states  of  New  York, 
Pennsylvania,  and  Maryland,  while  of  those  farther 
west,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Michigan,  and  Illinois,  were  like- 
wise included. 

Since  1819,  when  Governor  Bond  in  his  message  to 
the  first  state  legislature  of  Illinois  had  spoken  of  a 
proposed  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  the  attention 
of  politicians  and  the  people  generally  had  been  turned 
toward  transportation  problems.  But  practically  noth- 
ing of  a  very  definite  nature  had  been  done,  aside  from 
the  passage  of  a  few  bills  which  had  accomplished 
nothing. 

The  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  was  to  connect 
the  Illinois  River  with  the  Great  Lakes  at  Chicago.  As 

18 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       19 

an  engineering  problem  it  was  difficult,  yet  at  the  out- 
set the  state  was  faced  with  the  problem  of  how  to 
finance  the  project  rather  than  the  difficulty  of  com- 
pleting it.  Various  legislators  took  their  turn  at  pass- 
ing legislation  relating  to  it,  until  the  canal  commis- 
sioners, in  November,  1831,  advocated  the  construction 
of  a  railroad  instead  of  a  canal.  They  had  placed  the 
matter  in  the  hands  of  a  noted  engineer,  James  M. 
Bucklin  by  name,  who  recommended  that  a  railroad 
be  built,  as  it  would  serve  the  purpose  better.  The 
matter  dragged  along  until  1835,  when  by  act  of  the 
legislature  the  Governor  was  authorized  to  negotiate 
a  loan  not  to  exceed  $500,000  on  the  canal  lands  and 
toll  for  the  construction  of  the  Canal.  At  this  session 
the  way  was  paved  for  the  reckless  manner  in  which  its 
successor  handled  the  internal  improvement  and  fiscal 
legislation. 

When  Lincoln  and  his  eight  colleagues  from  San- 
gamon County  took  their  seats  in  December,  1836, 
they  found  this  legislature,  by  reason  of  a  reapportion- 
ment, larger  by  fifty  members  than  its  predecessors. 
The  Sang?mon  delegation  consisted  of  two  Senators 
and  seven  members  of  the  House,  who  on  account  of 
their  average  height  being  over  six  feet,  were  dubbed 
the  "Long  Nine." 

To  Lincoln  was  assigned  by  common  consent,  the 
leadership  of  this  delegation.  In  keeping  with  the 
temper  of  the  people,  they  were  to  a  man  pledged  to 
do  what  they  could  towards  internal  improvements.  In 
a  short  statement  issued  June  13,  Lincoln  had  said  that 
he  was  "for  distributing  the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of 
public  lands  to  the  several  states,  to  enable  our  state, 


20        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

in  common  with  others,  to  dig  canals  and  construct 
railroads  without  borrowing  money  and  paying  the  in- 
terest on  it." 

Shortly  before  the  legislature  met,  the  Sangamon 
representatives  had  been  instructed  by  a  convention  of 
their  constituency  "to  vote  for  a  general  system  of 
internal  improvements,"  and  on  the  evening  of  the  day 
the  legislature  assembled,  the  hall  of  the  House  was 
turned  over  to  a  crowd  of  delegates  from  all  over  the 
state,  recommending  that  their  elected  representatives 
enact  such  legislation  "commensurate  with  the  wants 
of  the  people." 

Another  matter  of  concern  was  the  contemplated 
removal  of  the  capital,  already  mentioned.  Originally 
located  in  a  wilderness,  an  agitation  was  begun  in  1832 
for  removing  it  to  another  portion  of  the  state,  after 
the  allotted  twenty  years  assigned  to  Vandalia  were  up. 
Various  other  localities  were  mentioned,  chief  among 
them  being  Springfield,  Alton,  Peoria,  and  Jackson- 
ville. Naturally  the  "Long  Nine"  were  expected  to  do 
what  they  could  for  Springfield,  which  was  located  in 
their  own  county. 

Lincoln  was  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  Finance, 
and  as  such  had  much  to  do  with  fostering  the  legisla- 
tion concerning  the  two  most  prominent  matters  of 
transportation  and  finance,  but  the  subject  nearest  the 
hearts  of  the  entire  Sangamon  delegation  was  the  re- 
moval of  the  capital  of  the  state  to  their  county.  In 
order  to  accomplish  this  end,  it  must  be  confessed  that 
under  the  able  leadership  of  Lincoln,  the  "Sangamon 
Chief,"  they  engaged  in  the  reprehensible  practice  of 
log-rolling.  We  find  them  to  a  man  voting  for  almost 


Courtesy,   Ida  M.    Tarbell,    and    The   Macmillan   Co. 


EARLY   RAILROAD   MAP    OF   ILLINOIS 

Showing  projection  of  railroads,  as  well  as  improve- 
ment of  various  streams,  and  construction  of  the  Illinois 
and  Michigan  Canal,  as  authorized  by  the  State  Assem- 
bly of  1836-7.  In  this  orgy  of  reckless  expenditures  for 
public  improvements  Lincoln  took  a  prominent  part. 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       31 

any  kind  of  extravagant  expenditures  that  was  sug- 
gested, in  order  that  they  might  go  back  to  their  con- 
stituents and  tell  them  that  their  county  would  soon 
hold  the  seat  of  government  for  the  "Prairie  State." 
Then  again  they  had  been  elected  on  pledges  to  support 
the  measures  aimed  to  aid  the  transportation  problem 
of  the  state. 

Several  of  Lincoln's  contemporaries  in  this  legisla- 
ture have  left  their  impressions  of  it  and  the  part  that 
Lincoln  played  in  the  enactment  of  the  leading  statutes 
passed. 

"We  ran  perfectly  wild  on  the  subject  of  internal 
improvements,"  said  General  Usher  F.  Linder.  "A  map 
of  that  scheme,  with  the  various  routes  along  which 
our  contemplated  roads  were  to  run,  would  be  some- 
what amusing  to  look  at,  at  this  day.  .  .  .  Every 
member  wanted  a  road  to  his  county  town — a  great 
many  of  them  got  one;  and  those  counties  through 
which  no  road  was  authorized  to  be  constructed  were 
to  be  compensated  in  money ;  which  was  to  be  obtained 
by  a  loan  from  Europe,  or — God  knows  where. 

"The  enthusiastic  friends  of  the  measure,  such  as 
John  Hogan,  one  of  the  members  from  Alton,  an  Irish- 
man, who  had  been  a  Methodist  preacher,  and  who  was 
quite  a  fluent  and  interesting  speaker,  maintained  that 
instead  of  there  being  any  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  loan 
of  the  fifteen  or  twenty  millions  authorized  to  be  bor- 
rowed, our  bonds  would  go  like  hot  cakes,  and  be  sought 
for  by  the  Rothschilds  and  Baring  Brothers,  and  others 
of  that  stamp,  and  that  the  premium  which  we  would 
obtain  upon  them  would  range  from  fifty  to  one  hun- 
dred per  cent,  and  that  the  premium  itself  would  be 


22       LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

sufficient  to  construct  most  of  the  important  works, 
leaving  the  principal  sum  to  go  into  our  treasury, 
and  leave  the  people  free  from  taxation  for  years  to 
come. 

"The  law  authorized  these  works  to  be  constructed 
by  the  state,  without  the  intervention  of  corporations 
or  any  individual  interest  whatever.  Commissioners 
were  to  be  appointed  to  go  to  Europe  and  borrow 
money  on  our  state  bonds.  .  .  . 

"I  supported  the  measure,  with  many  others,  and  am 
willing  now  to  take  my  share  of  the  blame  which  should 
attach  to  those  who  supported  it.  We  were  all  young 
and  inexperienced  men." 

In  referring  to  his  recollections  of  Lincoln  at  this 
session,  General  Linder  says  that  "he  made  a  good 
many  speeches  in  the  legislature,  mostly  on  local  mat- 
ters. A  close  observer,  however,  could  not  fail  to  see 
that  the  tall  six-footer,  with  his  homely  logic,  clothed 
in  the  language  of  the  humbler  classes,  had  the  stuff 
in  him  to  make  a  man  of  mark." 

Robert  L.  Wilson,  one  of  the  "Long  Nine,"  in 
speaking  of  his  fellow-representative's  oratorical  abili- 
ties, said  that  Lincoln  was  "in  the  halls  of  the  Legisla- 
ture a  ready  debater,  manifesting  extraordinary  ability 
in  his  peculiar  manner  of  presenting  his  subjects.  He 
did  not  follow  the  beaten  track  of  other  speakers  and 
thinkers,  but  appeared  to  comprehend  the  whole  situa- 
tion of  the  subject,  and  take  hold  of  its  principles.  He 
had  a  remarkable  faculty  for  concentration,  enabling 
him  to  present  his  subject  in  such  a  manner  that  noth- 
ing but  conclusions  were  presented." 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       23 

But  it  was  not  alone  as  a  speaker  that  Representa- 
tive Lincoln  excelled. 

"He  seemed  to  be  a  born  politician,"  said  Wilson. 
"We  followed  his  lead,  but  he  followed  nobody's  lead; 
he  hewed  his  way  for  us  to  follow,  and  we  gladly  did 
so.  He  could  grasp  and  concentrate  the  matters  under 
discussion,  and  his  clear  statement  of  an  intricate  or 
obscure  subject  was  better  than  an  ordinary  argument. 
It  may  almost  be  said  that  he  did  our  thinking  for  us, 
but  he  had  no  arrogance,  nothing  of  the  dictatorial; 
it  seemed  the  right  thing  to  do  as  he  did.  He  excited 
no  envy  or  jealousy.  He  was  felt  to  be  so  much  greater 
than  the  rest  of  us  that  we  were  glad  to  abridge  our 
intellectual  labors  by  letting  him  do  the  general  think- 
ing for  the  crowd." 

Wilson  also  relates  circumstantially  Lincoln's  atti- 
tude during  the  progress  of  the  bill  to  relocate  the 
seat  of  government.  The  contest  over  this  measure,  he 
says,  "was  long  and  severe."  Twice  it  seemed  doomed 
to  defeat.  But  in  the  darkest  hour  Lincoln  did  not 
despair.  He  rallied  his  forces  and  carried  them  to  vic- 
tory "just  before  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature." 

While  undoubtedly  engaged  in  log-rolling  during 
this  session,  another  Representative,  Henderson,  is 
authority  for  a  incident  which  occurred  that  winter 
illustrating  Lincoln's  "character  for  integrity  and  his 
firmness  in  maintaining  what  he  regarded  as  right  in 
his  public  acts,  in  a  marked  manner." 

It  seems  that  there  were  certain  efforts  being  made 
to  join  the  forces  bent  on  the  capital  removal  with 
those  favoring  some  particular  measure  which  Lincoln 


24        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

did  not  see  his  way  clear  to  support.  Prolonged  confer- 
ences did  not  change  his  attitude.  Finally  a  caucus 
was  called,  in  which  not  only  those  members  most  in- 
terested in  the  capital  removal  but  citizens  from  the 
northern  and  central  parts  of  the  state  were  present. 
Far  into  the  night  the  discussion  waxed,  but  Lincoln 
was  as  adamant.  His  conscience  would  not  allow  him 
to  be  party  to  the  deal,  whatever  it  may  have  been. 
After  midnight,  when  the  participants  had  exhausted 
their  persuasive  powers,  and  the  "candles  were  burning 
low  in  the  room,"  Lincoln  arose  and  made  "one  of  the 
most  powerful  speeches"  to  which  Henderson  ever  lis- 
tened. While  we  have  of  course  no  printed  report  of  it, 
yet  Henderson  is  authority  for  the  concluding  remarks. 

"You  may,"  said  Lincoln,  "burn  my  body  to  ashes, 
and  scatter  them  to  the  winds  of  heaven ;  you  may  drag 
my  soul  down  to  the  regions  of  darkness  and  despair 
to  be  tormented  forever;  but  you  will  never  get  me  to 
support  a  measure  which  I  believe  to  be  wrong,  al- 
though by  so  doing  I  may  accomplish  that  which  I  be- 
lieve to  be  right." 

Let  it  be  emphasized  that  this  legislature  with  which 
Abraham  Lincoln  had  to  deal  was  no  mediocre  body  of 
politicians.  Aside  from  the  fact  that  it  contained  a  fu- 
ture president,  there  were  other  men  of  ability  who 
afterwards  became  prominent  in  the  state  and  nation 
as  well.  Here  was  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  later  United 
States  Senator  and  candidate  for  president.  Here  was 
James  Shields,  native  of  Ireland,  officer  in  the  Mexican 
and  Civil  Wars,  Senator  from  three  states,  and  the 
only  personage  with  whom  Abraham  Lincoln  was  en- 
gaged to  fight  a  duel.  Here  also  were  John  A.  McCler- 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       25 

nand,  member  of  Congress  and  officer  of  high  command 
during  the  Civil  War;  Orville  H.  Browning,  United 
States  Senator  and  Cabinet  member;  William  A. 
Richardson,  representative  in  Congress  and  candidate 
for  Speaker  of  the  House,  and  United  States  Senator ; 
Augustus  C.  French,  twice  Governor  of  Illinois ;  James 
Semple,  foreign  Minister  and  United  States  Senator; 
not  to  mention  others  of  more  or  less  prominence. 

The  bill  as  finally  passed  in  February,  1837,  author- 
ized the  expenditure  of  over  twelve  million  dollars  for 
internal  improvements.  Estimating  the  cost  of  building 
railroads  at  about  $8,000  per  mile,  the  plans  called 
for  the  roads  to  be  begun  at  intersections  with  naviga- 
ble streams  and  important  towns,  and  from  thence  ex- 
tended in  both  directions.  The  sum  of  $3,500,000  was 
to  be  expended  on  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  which 
received  the  largest  single  appropriation. 

Let  us  see  what  the  provisions  of  this  "Act  to  estab- 
lish and  maintain  a  General  System  of  Internal  Im- 
provements, in  force  27th  February,  1837,"  were. 

First  there  was  to  be  a  railroad  from  Galena  in  the 
extreme  northwestern  part  of  the  state  extending 
southward  through  Springfield  to  Cairo,  in  the  south- 
ern extremity,  at  the  junction  of  the  Ohio  with  the 
Mississippi  River.  From  Alton,  above  St.  Louis,  at 
the  junction  of  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri  Rivers, 
three  roads  were  to  radiate:  one  to  Shawneetown,  on 
the  Ohio,  about  seventy-five  miles  northeast  of  Cairo; 
another  to  Mt.  Carmel,  just  across  the  border  from 
Indiana,  on  the  Wabash  River ;  and  a  third  also  extend- 
ing in  an  easterly  direction  to  the  border,  towards  Terre 
Haute,  Indiana. 


26        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

There  was  also  a  road  to  run  from  Quincy,  on  the 
Mississippi,  extending  across  the  state  through 
Springfield,  to  the  Wabash  River;  one  from  Warsaw, 
also  on  the  Mississippi,  to  Peoria,  on  the  Illinois  River ; 
and  finally  a  road  from  Pekin,  also  on  the  latter  stream, 
just  below  Peoria,  to  Bloomington,  a  projected  point 
on  the  main  line  running  from  Galena  to  Cairo.  A  short 
cut-off  was  to  join  the  latter  two  roads  running  from 
Peoria  to  Tremont. 

The  first  road  described,  to  run  from  Galena  to 
Cairo,  was  to  be  known  as  the  Illinois  Central. 

In  addition  to  authorizing  the  expenditure  of  four 
million  dollars  on  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  pro- 
visions were  made  for  the  improvement  of  all  the  larger 
and  some  of  the  small  streams  in  the  state:  the  Great 
and  Little  Wabash  Rivers,  the  Rock  River,  the  Kas- 
kaskia,  and  the  Illinois. 

To-day  we  cannot  but  marvel  at  the  ease  with  which 
the  raising  and  spending  of  the  then  enormous  sum 
of  twelve  million  dollars  was  provided  for  by  these 
early  Illinois  law-makers,  in  view  of  the  times  and  con- 
ditions prevailing. 

"These  sums,"  say  Nicolay  and  Hay,  in  their  bio- 
graphy of  Lincoln,  "monstrous  as  they  were,  were  still 
ridiculously  inadequate  to  the  purpose  in  view.  But 
while  the  frenzy  lasted  there  was  no  consideration  of 
cost  or  of  possibilities.  These  vast  works  were  voted 
without  estimates,  without  surveys,  without  any  ra- 
tional consideration  of  their  necessity.  The  voice  of 
reason  seemed  to  be  silent  in  the  Assembly;  only  the 
utterances  of  fervid  prophecy  found  listeners. 

"Governor  Ford  (then  the  State  Executive)  speaks 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       27 

of  one  orator  who  insisted,  amid  enthusiastic  plaudits, 
that  the  State  could  well  afford  to  borrow  one  hundred 
millions  for  internal  improvements.  The  process  of 
reasoning,  or  rather  predicting,  was  easy  and  natural. 

"The  roads  would  raise  the  price  of  land;  the  state 
could  enter  large  tracts  and  sell  them  at  a  profit;  for- 
eign capital  would  be  invested  in  land,  and  could  be 
heavily  taxed  to  pay  bonded  interest;  and  the  roads, 
as  fast  as  they  were  built,  could  be  operated  at  a  great 
profit  to  pay  for  their  own  construction.  The  climax 
of  the  whole  folly  was  reached  by  the  provision  of  law 
directing  that  work  should  be  begun  at  once  at  the 
termini  of  all  the  roads  and  the  crossings  of  all 
rivers.  .  .  . 

"Mr.  Lincoln  is  continually  found  voting  with  his 
friends  in  favor  of  this  legislation,  and  there  is  nothing 
to  show  that  he  saw  any  danger  in  it.  He  was  a  Whig, 
and  as  such  in  favor  of  internal  improvements  in  general 
and  a  liberal  construction  of  constitutional  law  in  such 
matters.  As  a  boy,  he  had  interested  himself  in  the  de- 
tails of  local  improvements  of  rivers  and  roads,  and  he 
doubtless  went  with  the  current  in  Vandalia  in  favor 
of  this  enormous  system." 

In  considering  this  extravagant  legislation  it  should 
be  noted  that  the  Assembly  also  voted  wildly  and  inju- 
diciously in  the  matter  of  banking  legislation,  which  it 
is  not  our  purpose  to  consider  here  in  detail.  We  can 
only  summarize  one  or  two  opinions. 

"The  legislature  of  which  Mr.  Lincoln  was  a  mem- 
ber," says  his  law-partner,  Herndon,  "was  one  that  will 
never  be  forgotten  in  Illinois.  Its  legislation  in  aid  of 
the  so-called  internal  improvement  system  was  signifi- 


28        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

cantly  reckless  and  unwise.  The  gigantic  and  stupen- 
dous operations  of  the  scheme  dazzled  the  eyes  of  nearly 
everybody,  but  in  the  end  it  rolled  up  a  debt  so  enor- 
mous as  to  impede  the  otherwise  marvelous  progress  of 
Illinois.  The  burdens  imposed  by  this  legislature  under 
the  guise  of  improvements  became  so  monumental  in 
size  it  is  little  wonder  that  at  intervals  for  years  after- 
ward the  monster  of  repudiation  often  showed  its  hid- 
eous face  above  the  waves  of  popular  indignation.  .  .  . 
However  much  we  may  regret  that  Lincoln  took  part 
and  aided  in  this  reckless  legislation,  we  must  not  for- 
get that  his  party  and  all  his  constituents  gave  him 
their  united  endorsement." 

"If  Mr.  Lincoln  had  no  other  claims  to  be  remem- 
bered than  his  services  in  the  legislature  of  1836-7," 
say  his  secretaries,  Nicolay  and  Hay,  "there  would  be 
little  to  say  in  his  favor.  Its  history  is  one  of  disaster 
to  the  state.  Its  legislation  was  almost  wholly  unwise 
and  hurtful.  The  most  we  can  say  for  Mr.  Lincoln  is 
that  he  obeyed  the  will  of  his  constituents,  as  he  prom- 
ised to  do,  and  labored  with  singular  skill  and  ability 
to  accomplish  the  objects  desired  by  the  people  who 
gave  him  their  votes.  ...  In  the  account  of  errors 
and  follies  committed  by  the  legislature  to  the  lasting 
injury  of  the  state,  he  is  entitled  to  no  praise  or  blame 
beyond  the  rest.  He  shared  in  that  sanguine  epidemic 
of  financial  and  industrial  quackery  which  devastated 
the  entire  community,  and  voted  with  the  best  men  of 
the  country  in  favor  of  schemes  which  appeared  then 
like  a  promise  of  an  immediate  millennium,  and  now 
seem  like  midsummer  madness.   He  entered  political 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1837       29 

life  in  one  of  those  eras  of  delusive  prosperity  which  so 
often  precede  great  financial  convulsions." 

"The  magnificent  system  of  internal  improvements 
which  this  Legislature  evolved  from  the  nebuloe  of  de- 
sire and  necessity,"  says  Henry  C.  Whitney,  law  asso- 
ciate of  Lincoln,  "would  have  been  all  right  if  the  state 
could  have  afforded  it,  or  if  the  hoped-for  development 
had  been  a  well-founded  pledge  and  promise  of  enough 
taxes  to  pay  the  interest  on  bonds  promptly  and 
surely;  but,  unfortunately,  no  such  conditions  existed, 
and  this  really  able  legislature  was  in  the  condition  of  a 
visionary  but  hopeful  man,  entering  into  enlarged  busi- 
ness enterprises,  with  roseate  hopes  and  brilliant  antic- 
ipations for  his  sole  capital.  However,  then  as  always 
in  a  farming  community,  the  ordinary  tax-list  was  the 
greatest  burden  to  be  borne,  and  to  have  carried  into 
effect  the  grand  schemes  which  were  here  proposed  by 
law  and  on  paper,  would  have  bankrupted  nine  men 
out  of  ten  in  the  whole  state,  so  the  inevitable  and  nec- 
essary result  was  that,  after  spending  millions,  the 
whole  scheme  was  hopelessly  abandoned,  with  very  lit- 
tle substantial  benefit.  In  point  of  fact,  I  happen  to 
remember  that,  as  late  as  1884,  a  railway  was  built  in 
the  southern  part  of  the  state  partly  upon  a  grade 
made  at  the  expense  of  the  state  nearly  a  half  century 
before," 

After  this  session  of  the  legislature,  Abraham  Lin- 
coln, having  been  largely  instrumental  in  voting  away 
twelve  millions  of  dollars,  returned  to  New  Salem,  walk- 
ing the  entire  distance  of  seventy-five  miles. 

Following  the  adoption  of  the  internal  improvement 


30        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

legislation,  the  Board  of  Fund  Commissioners  provided 
for  in  the  bill  prepared  to  begin  the  work  of  construc- 
tion at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  The  distance  was 
estimated  at  1,341  miles,  and  about  three  hundred  miles 
were  at  once  put  under  contract,  distributed  among  dif- 
ferent roads.  The  total  cost  was  estimated  at  $11,470,- 
444,  and  by  December,  1838,  the  Commissioners  had 
been  drawn  upon  for  the  sum  of  $1,142,027.  It  did 
not  take  a  very  close  observer  to  see  that  the  system 
was  headed  for  the  rocks. 

Political  opposition  soon  began  to  develop.  Certain 
newspapers  opened  up  their  broadsides  against  the 
work  of  the  legislature  and  its  framers.  The  prospective 
taxation  also  was  cause  for  antagonism.  Reelected  to 
the  legislature  in  1838,  we  find  in  January  of  the  fol- 
lowing year  that  Lincoln,  in  the  course  of  some  remarks 
as  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  Finance,  suggested 
that,  instead  of  taxation,  all  the  unsold  lands  lying 
within  the  state  be  purchased  from  the  United  States 
government  for  speculation. 

Meanwhile  the  finances  of  the  state  were  daily  be- 
coming more  snarled  and  it  was  getting  harder  to  keep 
up  the  interest  on  the  loans  negotiated.  The  Fund  Com- 
missioners, in  addition  to  facing  the  problem  of  how 
to  obtain  funds  to  carry  on  the  project,  were  working 
at  cross-purposes.  The  "Sangamon  Chief"  naturally 
came  in  for  some  of  the  opprobrium  heaped  upon  the 
legislators,  but  it  did  not  seem  to  affect  his  standing 
with  his  constituency. 

Instead  of  curtailing  expenditures,  which  it  should 
have  been  seen  was  the  wise  thing  to  do,  the  Eleventh 
Assembly  expanded  upon  the  system.  Additional  out- 


IMPROVEMENT  FOLLIES  OF  1887.       31 

lays  were  authorized  for  other  work.  A  general  taxa- 
tion law  was  passed,  carrying  with  it  the  provision 
for  a  levy  of  twenty  cents  on  each  hundred  dollars 
worth  of  property  in  the  state. 

Sentiment  in  opposition  to  the  system  rapidly  crys- 
tallized. Indignation  meetings  in  various  counties  de- 
nounced the  law  and  passed  resolutions  asking  for  its 
repeal.  Finally  in  February,  1840,  two  acts  were  drawn 
up  and  passed  which  stopped  all  railroad  work  in  the 
state.  Up  to  this  time,  after  all  this  blowing  of  horns, 
only  twenty-six  miles  of  railroad,  and  one  hundred 
and  five  miles  of  canal,  had  been  constructed,  and  this 
included  work  done  on  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal 
before  the  wholesale  legislation  had  been  enacted. 

In  considering  the  results  of  the  speculative  legis- 
lation in  Illinois,  it  is  but  just  to  recall  that  it  was  in 
the  year  1837  that  the  second  great  panic  suffered  by 
the  United  States  occurred,  due  in  part,  as  one  his- 
torian has  said,  to  the  "preceding  years  of  extraor- 
dinary speculation,  carried  on  with  a  most  unsound 
banking  system.'' 


CHAPTER   V 

THE  FIRST  RAILROAD  IN  ILLINOIS 

As  a  result  of  all  this  wildcat  legislation  involving 
millions  of  dollars,  it  will  be  of  interest  to  see  the  sort 
of  railroad  that  was  the  first  to  be  built — the  pioneer 
transportation  line  of  the  state.  This  was  known  as 
the  Northern  Cross  Railroad  and  probably  had  nothing 
to  do  with  astronomy;  it  simply  indicated  that  it  was 
to  cross  the  state  in  the  northern  section.  It  was  to 
extend  from  Quincy  through  Jacksonville,  Springfield, 
and  Decatur  to  the  Indiana  line,  the  eastern  terminus 
being  just  beyond  Danville  in  Vermillion  County. 

After  the  passage  of  the  Act  authorizing  this  road, 
Murray  McConnel,  an  aggressive  lawyer,  was  selected 
to  carry  out  the  project  in  and  around  Jacksonville. 
In  less  than  two  months  he  had  employed  James  M. 
Bucklin  as  chief  engineer.  He  also  induced  several  of 
his  own  relatives  who  had  some  knowledge  of  what 
had  been  done  in  New  York  in  railroad  construction 
to  come  West.  The  survey  was  rapidly  pushed  for  a 
distance  of  fifty-five  miles,  and  contracts  let  for  con- 
struction. This  right  of  way  ran  from  Meredosia,  on 
the  Illinois  River,  to  Springfield. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  energetic  McConnel  ordered 

rails,  cars,  and  other  equipment  from  the  East.   In 

those  days  there  were  no  large  locomotive  works  waiting 

to  turn  out  engines  of  any  size  or  weight,  but  such 

things  could  only  be  obtained  by  "prayer  and  fasting." 

32 


THE  FIRST  RAILROAD  IN  ILLINOIS     38 

A  locomotive  of  any  kind  was  a  ten  days'  wonder,  and 
its  behavior  when  on  the  rails  was  highly  problemati- 
cal. The  first  one  ordered  was  reported  "lost  in  its 
passage,"  by  one  of  the  commissioners.  It  should  be 
remembered  that  there  were  no  connecting  lines  of  road 
leading  back  East,  and  that  a  bulky  object  such  as  this 
would  have  to  be  transported  largely  by  water.  The 
problems  of  loading  and  unloading,  to  say  nothing  of 
portages,  presented  difficulties  unknown  to  the  shipper 
to-day. 

The  commissioner  who  had  reported  this  loss  soon 
after  obtained  another  locomotive,  which  he  claimed 
was  purchased  for  another  embryonic  road  in  the  north. 
This  one  was  shipped  by  way  of  the  Illinois  River,  on 
one  of  the  little,  puffing  packet-boats  of  the  time,  and 
rolled  ashore  at  Meredosia.  The  momentous  event  took 
place  in  November,  1838.  The  first  rails  had  been  laid 
six  months  earlier,  so  the  important  newcomer  found 
a  home  and  work  to  be  done  at  once.  For  the  first  time 
on  the  wide  prairies  of  the  great  West  the  puff  of  a 
locomotive  was  heard.  It  was  also  the  first  locomotive 
to  be  put  in  operation  in  the  whole  Mississippi  Valley. 

"The  little  locomotive  had  no  whistle,  no  spark- 
arrester,  no  cow-catcher,  and  the  cab  was  open  to  the 
sky,"  says  an  eye-witness.  "Its  speed  was  about  six 
miles  an  hour,  and  where  the  railroad  and  the  high- 
way lay  parallel  to  each  other  there  was  frequently 
a  trial  of  speed  between  the  locomotive  with  its  'pleasure 
cars'  and  the  stage-coaches.  Sometimes  the  stage- 
coaches came  in  ahead.  Six  inches  of  snow  were  suf- 
ficient to  blockade  the  trains  drawn  by  this  American 
engine." 


34        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

The  builders  of  this  pioneer  Western  engine  were 
Rogers,  Grosvenor,  and  Ketchum,  of  Paterson,  New- 
Jersey,  the  founders  of  a  famous  locomotive  works.  It 
was  called  the  "Rogers." 

By  the  latter  part  of  1838  the  road  was  in  running 
order  from  Meredosia  to  Jacksonville,  a  distance  of 
twenty-four  miles.  Continuing  eastward  the  road  into 
Springfield  was  completed  and  opened  for  traffic,  May 
13,  1842.  In  the  meanwhile  a  second  engine  was  pur- 
chased, built  by  M.  W.  Baldwin,  of  Philadelphia,  and 
placed  in  service  February  14,  of  the  same  year. 

An  account  of  the  construction  of  the  roadbed  is  like- 
wise interesting.  The  writer — another  Mr.  McConnel 
— says : 

"The  road  was  built  by  laying  parallel  lines  of  mud- 
sills, eight  or  ten  inches  square,  under  where  the  rails 
would  come,  save  where  the  earth  bottom  was  judged 
firm  enough  to  lay  cross  ties  much  as  is  now  done,  only 
much  further  apart  than  now.  On  these  ties  were  laid 
'stringers'  of  oak,  probably  four  by  six,  or  four  by 
eight  inches,  notched  and  pinned  together,  and  on  these 
were  spiked  flat  strap-iron  rails,  some  two  and  one- 
half  inches  wide,  five-eighths  of  an  inch  thick,  and  prob- 
ably twelve  or  fifteen  feet  long,  with  ends  mitred,  or 
slanted,  so  as  to  take  the  weight  of  a  wheel  on  each 
rail  before  it  had  quite  left  the  other.  The  frequent  re- 
sult may  be  easily  imagined.  These  ends  gradually 
curled  up  as  the  wheels  rolled  over  them,  till  the  points, 
rising  higher  than  the  wheel  center,  became  what  were 
called  'snake-heads,5  were  under-run  by  the  wheels  and 
shot  up  through  the  car  and  sometimes  through  an  un- 
fortunate passenger  or  employee. 


THE  FIRST  RAILROAD  IN  ILLINOIS     35 

"The  only  passenger  coaches  the  road  possessed," 
continues  Mr.  McConnel,  "were  about  of  the  size  and 
'build'  of  the  big  omnibuses  of  the  past  generation.  The 
seats  ran  along  each  side,  like  those  of  the  omnibus, 
and  the  coaches  were  equally  destitute  of  any  and  every 
other  appliance  for  the  comfort  or  convenience  of  the 
traveler,  other  than  to  sit  down  and  'hang  on' — if  he 
could.  The  speed  of  the  trains  was  very  low,  as  speed  is 
now  measured,  but  it  was,  relatively  to  that  to  which 
that  generation  was  accustomed,  nearly  as  high  as  we 
now  habitually  know,  the  roadway  was  very  uneven, 
there  were  no  straps  to  hang  to  and  the  lurching  about 
of  passengers  unfortunate  enough  to  be  obliged  to 
stand,  their  stumbling  over  and  trampling  upon  the  feet 
of  the  seated  travelers,  into  whose  surprised  embraces 
they  not  infrequently  stumbled  and  sprawled,  were  often 
vastly  amusing  to  onlookers  howsoever  exasperating  to 
the  participants.  It  was  often  equally  disagreeable 
when  passengers  were  few.  There  were  no  divisions  of 
any  kind  in  the  seats.  Along  each  wall  of  the  coach 
ran  a  smooth  stretch  of  bench-like  seat,  and  a  sudden 
lurch  of  the  coach  would  often  slide  a  sitter  half  the 
length  of  the  coach,  and  land  him  or  her,  with  a  grue- 
some bump  in  the  middle  of  the  floor. 

"These  were  specimen  inconveniences  for  travelers, 
while  the  want  of  some  of  the  simplest  of  the  railway 
devices  of  the  past  twenty  years  brought  serious  hard- 
ships and  hazards  to  the  employees.  Cars  were  coupled 
only  with  the  long  link  and  pin,  operated  by  hand  and 
resulting  in  any  train  of  a  number  of  cars  suddenly 
stretching  or  shrinking  in  length  with  sudden  changes 
of  speed  as  much  as  a  score  or  more  of  feet,  with  sudden 


36        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

jars  and  hazards  unknown  on  modern  trains.  There 
was  no  means  then  known  for  warming  the  water  in  the 
tank  of  the  locomotive  tender,  and  the  only  known 
means  of  conveying  it  from  the  tank  to  the  boiler  was 
by  ordinary  leathern  hose  swinging  freely  enough  be- 
tween the  two  to  assure  immunity  from  breaking  in  any 
one  of  these  sudden  elongations  of  the  train.  Often  a 
stop  of  two  or  three  minutes  at  any  station  exposed  to 
the  bitter  cold  blasts  of  winter,  would  suffice  to  freeze 
the  water  in  these  hose,  tying  up  the  train  for  from  a 
few  minutes  to  several  hours,  destitute  of  any  means 
of  informing  anybody  of  the  cause  and  probable  dura- 
tion of  the  delay.  A  few  minutes  of  delay  in  pushing 
through  a  snow-drift  far  from  any  station  would  bring 
the  same  frozen  hose,  far  from  even  the  useless  but 
sympathetic  knowledge  of  the  denizens  of  a  bit  of 
prairie  station. 

"Then  it  became  necessary  for  the  train  crew  to  take 
wood  from  the  locomotive  tender — the  art  of  burning 
coal  in  a  locomotive  furnace  had  not  then  been  discov- 
ered— and  carefully  build  a  fire  on  the  ground  between 
the  rails,  and  under  the  hose  where  it  passed  in  festoons 
from  tank  to  boiler,  watching  it  like  a  hawk  lest  it 
scorch  the  leather,  in  which  case  the  hose  would  crack 
and  burst  and  the  locomotive  be  left  hopelessly  'dead,' 
till  drawn  away  by  some  force  other  than  its  own. 

"What  this  task  must  be  for  two  or  three  men 
crouched  in  the  narrow  space  under  a  locomotive  cab, 
with  a  maniac-like  northwest  wind  howling  like  a  legion 
of  devils  across  the  open  prairie,  driving  clouds  of 
stinging  snow  before  it,  may  be  partly  guessed  by  those 
who  have  seen  a  prairie  blizzard,  but  can  never  be  ap- 


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THE  FIRST  RAILROAD  IN  ILLINOIS     37 

predated  save  by  him  who  has  taken  part  in  the  tortur- 
ing task. 

"The  facilities  for  supplying  locomotives  with  fuel 
and  water  were  very  meager,  and  when  the  train  stopped 
at  any  'wooding'  station,  the  whole  train  crew  and  not 
infrequently  some  of  the  passengers,  joined  in  throwing 
the  sawed  wood  into  the  great  box  of  the  tender,  some- 
times even  having  to  add  to  the  labors  of  the  sawyers 
to  fill  the  needed  quantity.  In  many  cases  some  slight 
accident  has  caused  a  stop  at  some  point  remote  from 
scanty  water  stations,  and  lines  of  disgusted  passengers 
trudged  back  and  forth  for  hours  between  the  impotent 
train  and  the  nearest  creek  or  farm  well,  often  a  dis- 
tance of  miles,  each  with  one  or  two  pails  of  some  kind, 
carrying  water  to  put  into  the  tank. 

"These  are  but  a  few  of  the  embarrassments  of  rail- 
roading in  those  days.  There  were  scores  of  others, 
for  the  signal  code,  the  air  brake,  the  automatic  cou- 
pler, the  toilet  devices  of  to-day,  the  sleeping-car,  the 
dining-car,  steam-heated  cars,  all  lights  save  candles 
alone,  the  use  of  the  telegraph  in  operating  trains, 
these  and  many  another  commonplace  of  to-day,  were  as 
yet  undreamed  of.  I  speak  only  of  such  as  I  saw  some- 
thing of  in  my  boyhood." 

The  road  was  operated  by  the  state  until  1847,  when, 
being  unable  to  complete  all  the  works  authorized  by 
the  original  Act,  the  Governor  by  deed  conveyed  the 
railroad  property  to  a  combination  of  local  individuals 
who  reorganized  it  under  the  name  of  the  Sangamon 
and  Morgan  Railroad  Company.  This  company  had 
been  incorporated  by  the  state  legislature,  March  1, 
1845,  and  it  retained  the  name  of  Sangamon  and  Mor- 


38        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

gan  until  1853,  when  the  legislature  changed  its  name 
to  the  Great  Western  Railroad  Company. 

Abraham  Lincoln's  name  is  found  but  rarely  in  these 
early  years  of  railroading,  although  he  was  doubtless 
active  both  as  lawyer  and  legislator.  He  appeared  as 
opposing  counsel  to  the  corporation  in  certain  litigation 
when  it  was  operating  under  the  latter  two  names, 
mention  of  which  will  be  made  in  another  chapter. 

Later  by  various  sales  or  consolidations,  the  road 
became  a  part  of  the  present  Wabash  system,  which 
literally  follows  the  line  surveyed  and  located  by  those 
old  railroad  pioneers  of  Illinois,  on  that  part  of  its 
route. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  in  passing  that  when  the 
state  turned  over  the  road  to  its  new  owners  in  1847, 
the  two  engines  which  had  been  in  use  were  found  to  be 
so  dilapidated  and  worn  that  they  were  unfit  for  further 
use.  For  several  months  the  company  was  compelled  to 
run  the  trains,  consisting  of  two  cars,  with  oxen  and 
mules  as  motive  power. 

The  present-day  officials  of  the  Wabash  Railroad 
Company  gave  the  writer  the  following  story,  which  it 
is  claimed  was  told  by  Lincoln  while  practicing  law  at 
Springfield,  relating  his  experiences  on  one  of  the 
early  runs.  Lincoln  said  that  he  was  a  passenger  on  a 
train  drawn  by  one  of  the  little  engines  coming  from 
Jacksonville,  one  stormy  night,  and  as  the  train  ap- 
proached Springfield  the  fool  engineer  wanted  to  notify 
his  wife  that  his  train  was  coming.  He  gave  a  blast  of 
the  whistle  and  blew  all  of  the  steam  out  of  the  boiler, 
and  the  passengers  had  to  walk  to  Springfield  through 
the  mud  and  rain! 


THE  FIRST  RAILROAD  IN  ILLINOIS    39 

This  Northern  Cross  Railroad,  with  its  queer  loco- 
motive, primitive  coaches  and  freight  cars,  and  crude 
road-bed,  was  the  first  that  Abraham  Lincoln  looked 
upon,  and  through  it  he  made  his  acquaintance  with 
railroads. 


CHAPTER   VI 

LINCOLN  AND  THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL 
RAILROAD 

It  has  been  said  that  the  "history  of  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Railroad  is  the  history  of  Illinois."  But  as  to 
whether  Lincoln  aided  or  opposed  this  project  in  its  in- 
ception, there  is  conflicting  testimony. 

The  idea  of  a  railroad  as  a  highway  to  connect  the 
northern  and  southern  parts  of  the  state  seems  to  have 
been  first  suggested  by  Lieutenant-Governor  A.  M. 
Jenkins  in  1832,  his  proposition  causing  considerable 
discussion.  Three  years  later,  Sidney  Breese,  known  as 
the  "Father  of  the  Illinois  Central,"  disseminated  his 
views  as  to  a  combination  of  internal  improvement 
schemes,  which  included  the  building  of  a  railroad. 
Several  newspapers  also  took  up  their  cudgels  in  favor 
of  the  project,  notably  the  Sangamon  Journal,  a  paper 
of  influence  in  early  Illinois  history.  Finally,  on  Jan- 
uary 18,  1836,  a  year  before  the  notorious  internal 
improvement  legislature  passed  its  budget,  the  Central 
Railroad  Company  was  incorporated  to  construct  a 
railroad  from  "the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  to  a  point  on  the 
Illinois  River  at  or  near  the  termination  of  the  Illinois- 
Michigan  Canal."  However,  as  nothing  of  a  permanent 
nature  was  done  before  the  session  of  the  legislature,  it 
was  certain  that  nothing  could  be  done  after  it  for  some 
time  to  come. 

The  attendant  financial  break-down  did  not,  however, 

40 


THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD     41 

dishearten  the  progressive  citizens  of  the  state,  and  we 
learn  that  on  March  6,  1843,  the  Great  Western  Rail- 
way Company,  commonly  called  the  Holbrook  Com- 
pany after  the  head  of  the  enterprise,  was  incorporated. 
Meeting  many  difficulties  of  a  financial  nature,  this 
project  also  failed,  and  two  years  later  the  charter 
was  repealed.  This  road  should  not  be  confused  with 
the  Great  Western  Railroad  Company,  one  of  the  suc- 
cessors of  the  Northern  Cross. 

Sidney  Breese,  having  been  elected  to  the  United 
States  Senate,  tried  to  get  the  Government  interested 
in  a  railroad  through  central  Illinois,  but  it  was  not 
until  the  election  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas  to  the  same 
body  in  1847  that  the  proposition  looked  favorable.  In 
September,  1850,  a  bill  introduced  by  the  latter  in  be- 
half of  a  land  grant  was  ratified  by  both  Houses  of 
Congress  and  signed  by  President  Fillmore.  Under  its 
terms  the  Federal  Government  granted  to  the  state  of 
Illinois  alternate  sections  of  public  land  for  six  miles 
on  each  side  of  a  proposed  railroad  from  Cairo  to 
Galena,  and  from  Chicago  to  a  junction  with  the  main 
line. 

When  the  Illinois  legislature  met,  on  January  1, 
1851,  the  members  were  confronted  with  the  problem 
as  to  how  to  utilize  the  Federal  Land  Grant.  There 
were  four  methods  open : 

First,  state  construction  of  the  road  by  means  of  the 
grant,  along  the  line  of  the  internal  improvement  plan 
of  1837. 

Second,  the  surrendering  of  the  grant  to  bondhold- 
ers and  the  consequent  construction  by  them  on  terms 
similar  to  those  holding  canal  bonds  in  1840. 


42        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Third,  the  completion  of  the  road  under  the  charter 
of  1849  by  the  Great  Western  Railway  Company, 
which  included  the  retention  of  all  state  lands. 

Fourth,  the  creating  of  an  entirely  new  private  cor- 
poration and  the  transfer  to  it  of  the  land  grant  under 
certain  restrictions  and  with  certain  payments  to  the 
state.  Under  this  plan  the  company  formed  would  as- 
sume entire  responsibility  for  the  completion  of  the 
road. 

Many  bills  were  presented  in  both  Senate  and  House, 
but  no  agreement  could  be  reached.  At  this  stage  of  the 
game  a  Massachusetts  promoter,  Robert  Rantoul,  pre- 
sented a  memorial  to  the  legislature  suggesting  that  it 
create  a  corporation  and  surrender  to  it  the  Federal 
Land  Grant.  He  was  acting  in  the  interest  of  a  group 
of  eastern  capitalists  who  would  form  such  a  corpora- 
tion, and  would  agree  to  build  a  railroad  "equal  in  all 
respects  to  the  railroad  running  between  Boston  and 
Albany,  with  such  improvements  thereon  as  experience 
has  shown  to  be  desirable  and  expedient." 

There  is  evidence  that  Abraham  Lincoln  appeared 
before  the  legislature  in  the  capacity  of  lobbyist  for  one 
or  the  other  of  the  contending  interests,  but  just  which 
one  is  a  matter  of  dispute.  From  a  statement  issued 
by  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  in  19^2,  on 
the  authority  of  J.  G.  Drennan,  we  quote  the  follow- 
ing: Lincoln  "appeared  before  the  committee  of  the 
legislature  of  Illinois  at  the  time  it  reported  favorably 
the  charter  creating  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Com- 
pany, which  charter  as  reported  by  the  committee  was 
passed  by  the  Legislature,  February  11,  1851.  In  1904 
we  were  able  to  establish  Mr.  Lincoln's  connection  with 


THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD    43 

the  granting  of  the  charter  of  the  Illinois  Central 
through  a  statement  obtained  from  Judge  Anthony 
Thornton,  who  at  that  time  was  the  only  living  member 
of  the  legislature  of  Illinois  which  granted  the  charter. 
His  statement  declared  that  he  had  a  distinct  recol- 
lection that  Mr.  Lincoln  was  associated  with  Robert 
Rantoul,  Jr.,  one  of  the  members  of  the  first  board  of 
directors  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company, 
to  obtain  the  company's  charter.  Severe  opposition  was 
encountered,  for  there  were  many  legislators  who  looked 
with  distinct  disfavor  upon  chartering  a  concern  of 
such  debatable  value  as  a  railway  company.  But  Mr. 
Lincoln's  eloquence  prevailed." 

A  former  publication  of  the  road  gives  these  "ex- 
cerpts" from  the  statement  as  dictated  by  Judge 
Thornton,  in  August,  1904:  "Judge  Anthony  Thorn- 
ton, at  the  request  of  Mr.  John  G.  Drennan,  Attorney 
for  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  makes  the  following 
statement  to  Julia  Embry,  stenographer  and  notary 
public,  in  and  for  Shelby  County,  Illinois:  'From  in- 
vestigation I  think  I  am  the  only  living  member  of  the 
legislature  of  Illinois  that  granted  the  charter  of  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  in  1851.  I  have  a 
distinct  recollection  that  Mr.  Lincoln  and  several  mem- 
bers of  the  Legislature  were  engaged  by  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  Company  to  obtain  the  charter  for  the 
company.  A  right  of  way  of  two  hundred  feet  was 
asked  for  to  avoid  somewhat  the  danger  of  fire.  The 
charter  was  granted  at  that  legislature  as  amended, 
and,  as  I  understand,  it  now  exists.'  " 

Turning  to  the  other  evidence,  we  have  on  record  a 
statement  made  before  the  Massachusetts  Historical  So- 


44        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ciety  in  1909,  by  a  son  of  Robert  Rantoul,  to  the  effect 
that  Abraham  Lincoln  opposed  the  proposition  of  Ran- 
toul, and  that  his  lobbying  was  done  for  western  pro- 
moters. Mr.  Rantoul  says :  "I  was  visiting  Washington 
in  January,  1863,  and  saw  Mr.  Lincoln  for  the  first 
time  at  a  public  reception  in  the  East  Room  of  the 
White  House.  When  he  got  my  card  from  the  officer 
in  attendance,  he  repeated  the  name  to  himself  several 
times  and  then  said:  'I  wonder  if  you  are  connected 
with  a  lawyer  of  that  name  who  came  to  Illinois  about 
1850,  to  secure  from  our  legislature  the  charter  of  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad?'  I  told  him  that  was  my 
father.  Upon  which  he  burst  forth  with  a  great  roar 
of  laughter  and  much  gesticulation,  and  said  that  he 
did  all  he  could  to  stop  it,  but  was  not  successful.  He 
said  he  was  retained  by  local  capitalists  who,  although 
they  could  not  then  build  the  road  as  they  had  already 
been  intending,  were  very  unwilling  that  eastern  capi- 
talists should  step  in  and  secure  a  grant  which  would 
make  it  forever  impossible  for  them  to  build  a  road.  But 
they  were  defeated.  He  favored  me  with  some  minutes 
of  interesting  conversation  on  this  theme,  and  spoke 
with  such  amused  good  humor  of  the  incident  that  my 
reception  whetted  rather  than  allayed  my  curiosity  to 
see  more  of  this  extraordinary  man." 

Both  Robert  Rantoul  and  his  son  have  since  departed 
this  life,  but  a  daughter  of  the  latter  in  a  communi- 
cation to  the  writer  says:  "My  grandfather,  Robert 
Rantoul,  Jr.,  was  sent  to  Illinois  to  get  the  charter 
through  the  Illinois  legislature  for  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad.  He  succeeded  in  getting  it  through.  Mr.  Lin- 
coln told  my  father  that  they  all  opposed  it  as  hard  as 


THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD     45 

they  could,  because  they  did  not  want  eastern  capital  to 
come  out  there  and  own  the  road.  But  Mr.  Lincoln 
said,  'Your  father  beat  me,  he  beat  me,'  and  then 
roared  with  laughter." 

In  the  face  of  this  conflicting  testimony,  it  would 
appear  that  no  final  conclusion  can  be  reached,  al- 
though to  our  mind  it  seems  more  plausible  that  Lincoln 
had  been  retained  by  local  capitalists,  rather  than 
by  those  from  the  East.  We  have  taken  pains  to  have 
contemporary  files  of  the  early  Illinois  newspapers 
searched  for  anything  connecting  him  as  a  lobbyist  with 
this  session  of  the  General  Assembly,  but  they  are  all 
silent.  In  fact,  the  names  of  no  lobbyists  appear,  nor 
are  any  of  their  activities  chronicled.  History  records 
that  after  considerable  discussion  and  opposition,  the 
proposition  of  Rantoul  was  accepted  by  the  legislature 
and  the  bill  signed  by  Governor  French. 


CHAPTER    VII 

FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST 

For  several  years  after  the  coming  of  the  railroads 
to  Illinois,  Lincoln's  sole  acquaintance  with  this  new 
method  of  traveling  was  in  his  own  state,  and  he  prob- 
ably used  the  stage-coach  or  a  horse  far  more  fre- 
quently. But  as  the  lines  of  steel  began  to  reach  ten- 
tatively here  and  there  across  the  country,  linking  up 
one  important  center  after  another,  travelers  came 
to  depend  upon  them  more  and  more. 

We  have  already  noted  the  curious  analogy  between 
Lincoln's  political  career  and  the  railroads.  As  they 
reached  here  and  there  in  the  Midwest,  his  own  name 
began  to  be  bruited  abroad.  It  was  in  the  budding 
forties,  that  time  of  such  rapid  development  of  this 
section  of  the  United  States.  It  was  a  time  that  tended 
to  the  building  of  men. 

Lincoln  made  at  least  six  pilgrimages  to  the  eastern 
seaboard  before  he  took  up  his  duties  as  President — 
five  of  which  had  some  bearing  upon  his  political  career. 
Two  were  made  as  a  member  of  Congress  from  Illinois. 
One  took  him  to  Washington  as  an  applicant  for  a 
Federal  office.  Then  came  a  trip  to  the  New  Jersey 
coast,  in  the  nature  of  a  pleasure  excursion — one  of  the 
few  such  jaunts  in  his  busy  life.  The  next  was  the 
famous  journey  into  the  heart  of  an  unknown  and 
critical  country  to  deliver  his  address  at  the  Cooper 
Institute  in  New  York.  Then  came  the  eventful  journey 

46 


FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST       ¥1 

of  a  year  later,  with  its  attendant  triumphs  and  perils, 
to  take  his  seat  as  President  of  the  United  States. 

Let  us  turn  the  pages  of  history  back  to  the  time, 
in  1847,  when  he  talked  about  and  planned  his  first 
long  pilgrimage  away  from  home  to  that  mysterious 
land,  the  East.  What  did  it  have  in  store  for  him? — he 
must  have  pondered  when  he  had  attained  the  next  rung 
on  his  political  ladder,  a  seat  in  Congress.  But  the 
more  immediate  question  was,  How  best  to  go?  What 
route  presented  the  fewest  discomforts?  A  journey  from 
Illinois  to  the  Atlantic  Coast  was  still  a  matter  of  many 
days,  if  not  weeks,  and  the  transcontinental  traveler  a 
rara  avis. 

When  he  left  his  home  in  Springfield,  in  October, 
1847,  to  take  his  seat  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
at  Washington,  Lincoln  was  eagerly  looking  forward 
to  the  journey,  for  it  would  be  the  first  time  in  his  life 
that  he  had  been  east  of  Ohio  and  Kentucky.  He  went 
by  way  of  his  native  state,  desiring  to  stop  at  Louisville 
to  see  his  erstwhile  Springfield  friend,  Joshua  Speed. 

At  that  period  of  American  history  his  passage  from 
Springfield  to  Washington  would  necessarily  have  been 
made  chiefly  by  other  means  than  rail  transportation. 
He  would  have  gone  by  stage  as  far  as  Louisville,  by 
way  of  Terre  Haute  and  Vincennes,  Indiana.  After 
leaving  Speed  the  stage  would  again  be  made  use  of 
into  Frankfort,  where  a  short  rail  line  operating  be- 
tween Frankfort  and  Lexington  could  have  been  used 
to  the  latter  point.  The  present  Louisville  and  Nash- 
ville Railroad  had  its  inception  in  this  early  Kentucky 
road,  incorporated  by  the  state  in  1830  as  the  Lexing- 
ton and  Ohio  Railroad,  and  in  operation  since  1834. 


48        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

From  Lexington  to  Covington,  Virginia,  over  what 
is  known  as  the  Boone  Trail,  the  stage  would  again  be 
used,  as  also  from  the  latter  point  into  Winchester, 
Virginia,  by  way  of  Staunton.  Thence  to  Washington 
he  must  have  gone  by  rail  over  what  is  now  known  as 
the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad,  but  which  then  fol- 
lowed a  more  roundabout  route  than  that  of  to-day. 

When  Lincoln  went  over  it,  the  line  running  from 
Winchester  to  Harper's  Ferry  was  called  the  Win- 
chester and  Potomac  Railroad.  Thence  to  Relay  Sta- 
tion it  was  known  as  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio ;  and  from 
Relay  Station  into  Washington,  it  was  known  as  the 
Washington  Branch  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio,  having 
been  built  under  a  separate  charter. 

Lincoln  reached  Washington,  a  tall,  lank  Westerner 
carrying  his  carpet-bag  and  looking  uncertainly  about 
him,  on  December  2.  We  find  his  name  registered  on 
that  day,  at  Brown's  Hotel.  As  he  had  left  his  home  in 
October,  the  trip,  counting  his  visit  with  his  friend, 
Speed,  must  have  taken  over  six  weeks.  He  must  have 
felt  as  if  he  had  come  from  the  other  side  of  the 
world. 

The  following  June  he  absented  himself  from  the 
first  session  of  the  Thirtieth  Congress  long  enough  to 
attend  the  Whig  National  Convention  which  nominated 
General  Zachary  Taylor  for  the  presidency.  To  do  this 
he  necessarily  used  the  Washington  Branch  of  the  Bal- 
timore and  Ohio  road  as  far  as  Baltimore,  and  from 
thence  into  Philadelphia,  where  the  convention  was 
held,  the  Philadelphia,  Wilmington  and  Baltimore  Rail- 
road, now  a  part  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  system. 

This  was  his  first  glimpse  of  the  Quaker  City  and 


FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST       49 

here  he  met  for  the  first  time  that  great  Pennsylvania 
Commoner,  Thaddeus  Stevens,  who  undoubtedly  made 
an  impression  upon  the  Illinois  Congressman,  as  the 
following  letter,  hitherto  unpublished,  testifies : 

Washington,  Sept.  3,  1848. 

Hon.  Thaddeus  Stevens 
Dear  Sir: 

You  may  possibly  remember  seeing  me  at  the  Phila- 
delphia convention — introduced  to  you  as  the  lone 
Whig  star  of  Illinois.  Since  the  adjournment,  I  have  re- 
mained here,  so  long,  in  the  Whig  document  room — I 
am  now  about  to  start  for  home ;  and  I  desire  the  undis- 
guised opinion  of  some  experienced  and  sagacious 
Pennsylvania  politician,  as  to  how  the  vote  of  that  state, 
for  governor,  and  president,  is  likely  to  go.  In  casting 
about  for  such  a  man,  I  have  settled  upon  you;  and  I 
shall  be  much  obliged  if  you  will  write  me  at  Springfield, 
Illinois. 

The  news  we  are  receiving  here  now,  by  letters  from 
all  quarters  is  steadily  on  the  rise ;  we  have  none  lately 
of  a  discouraging  character.  This  is  the  sum,  without 
giving  particulars. 

Yours  truly, 

A.  Lincoln 

The  course  which  Lincoln  had  pursued  in  Congress 
had  attracted  the  attention  of  prominent  Whigs,  and  he 
was  invited  to  deliver  several  campaign  speeches  in 
Massachusetts  after  the  adjournment  of  Congress. 

Early  in  September  he  left  Washington,  using  the 
same  route  previously  traversed  into  Philadelphia.  In 
going  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York  three  different 
rail  lines  would  have  to  be  traversed  as  far  as  Jersey 


U\ 


50        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

City,  at  which  point  he  crossed  the  river  by  ferry.  These 
three  roads  form  the  present  main  line  of  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad,  and  were  incorporated  as  follows :  The 
Philadelphia  and  Trenton  Railroad  from  Philadelphia 
to  Trenton;  the  Camden  and  Amboy  Railroad  and 
Transportation  Company  from  Trenton  to  New  Bruns- 
wick, New  Jersey;  and  the  New  Jersey  Railroad  and 
Transportation  Company  from  New  Brunswick  to  Jer- 
sey City. 

Lincoln  must  have  been  much  interested  in  the  vari- 
ous lines  he  was  to  observe  and  traverse  in  his  journey 
to  New  England,  for  he  had  heard  much  concerning 
them  while  the  early  rail  legislation  in  Illinois  was  being 
agitated.  The  heavier  roadbeds  and  more  comfortable 
coaches  were  also  a  source  of  pleasure. 

As  Worcester,  Masachusetts,  was  his  first  objective, 
two  routes  were  open  from  New  York,  both  of  which 
necessitated  a  water-and-rail  combination.  His  itinerary 
is  thus  outlined  by  President  Pearson  of  the  present 
New  Haven  system : 

"We  believe  he  must  have  traveled  via  the  old  Nor- 
wich Line  of  steamers  from  New  York  to  Norwich, 
Connecticut,  and  thence  by  the  Norwich  and  Worcester 
Railroad  from  Norwich  to  Worcester.  This  at  that 
time  was  the  most  direct  line  of  communication  between 
the  two  cities.  There  is  a  possibility  he  might  have  taken 
the  steamboat  from  New  York  to  New  Haven,  the  Hart- 
ford and  New  Haven  Railroad  from  New  Haven  to 
Springfield,  and  the  Western  Railroad  from  Spring- 
field to  Worcester,  although  this  line  would  be  less 
direct  than  the  line  via  Norwich  which,  according  to 
our  records,  was  the  favored  line  to  Worcester  at  that 


FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST       51 

period.  The  Norwich  and  Worcester  Railroad  is  now 
leased  to  and  operated  by  this  company,  and  the  Nor- 
wich Line  steamers  are  owned  and  operated  by  the  New 
England  Steamship  Company,  our  principal  steam- 
ship line.  Our  present  rail  line  between  New  York  and 
New  Haven  was  not  opened  until  December  27,  1848." 

On  the  evening  of  September  12,  Abraham  Lincoln 
spoke  before  a  large  audience  in  the  City  Hall  at 
Worcester,  making  a  very  favorable  impression.  Three 
days  later  he  delivered  an  address  in  Washingtonian 
Hall,  Boston,  reaching  that  point  by  the  Boston  and 
Worcester  Railroad,  now  a  part  of  the  Boston  and 
Albany.  The  next  day  he  spoke  at  Lowell,  in  all  likeli- 
hood traveling  over  the  Boston  and  Lowell  Railroad 
Corporation's  tracks,  which  are  now  a  part  of  the 
Boston  and  Maine  system. 

The  next  speech  of  which  we  have  record  was  de- 
livered on  the  18th,  at  what  was  then  called  Lower 
Mills,  Dorchester,  now  a  part  of  Boston.  This  was 
reached  by  team,  as  there  was  then  no  other  direct 
means  of  communication  between  those  suburban 
points,  which  statement  also  applies  to  Chelsea,  where 
he  spoke  the  following  day,  and  to  Dedham,  where  an 
address  was  delivered  in  the  afternoon  of  the  20th.  That 
evening  he  spoke  at  Cambridge,  reaching  the  latter 
place  by  way  of  the  Fitchburg  Railroad,  now  a  part  of 
the  Boston  and  Maine. 

Friday,  September  22,  was  the  outstanding  day  of 
his  Massachusetts  itinerary,  for  upon  that  evening  he 
and  William  H.  Seward  of  New  York  were  the  rival  at- 
tractions at  an  immense  Whig  rally  held  at  Tremont 
Temple  in  Boston. 


52        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

The  following  morning  Lincoln  left  Boston,  intend- 
ing to  return  home  by  way  of  Albany,  Niagara  Falls, 
and  Lake  Erie.  In  order  to  get  to  Albany  he  must  have 
used  the  Boston  and  Worcester  Railroad  to  Worcester ; 
thence  the  Western  Railroad  to  State  Line;  and  from 
there  into  Albany,  the  Albany  and  West  Stockbridge 
Railroad.  These  three  roads  now  form  the  main  line 
of  the  Boston  and  Albany  Railroad. 

While  in  Albany  Lincoln  called  on  Thurlow  Weed 
and  Millard  Fillmore,  Taylor's  running  mate.  Who 
shall  not  say  that  this  visit  to  Weed,  the  power  in  New 
York  State  politics,  was  not  inspired  by  Seward,  for 
Weed  was  Seward's  political  mentor? 

Niagara  Falls  as  the  next  objective,  the  returning 
Congressman  could  go  by  rail  as  far  as  Buffalo  on  a 
through  schedule  over  a  line  consisting  of  seven  differ- 
ent railroads,  all  now  a  part  of  the  New  York  Central 
Railroad.  At  Buffalo  a  change  of  cars  would  be  made 
to  the  Buffalo  and  Niagara  Falls  Railroad,  likewise  now 
a  part  of  the  New  York  Central  system.  Herndon,  his 
law  partner,  states  that  from  Buffalo  Lincoln  came 
down  Lake  Erie  to  either  Toledo  or  Detroit  by  boat. 
From  information  in  possession  of  the  writer,  it  seems 
likely  that  the  Detroit  route  was  used. 

It  must  have  been  late  in  September  when  Detroit 
was  reached,  and  at  that  time  the  normal  route  would 
have  been  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  as  far  as 
Kalamazoo.  From  this  point  he  could  go  to  New  Buf- 
falo, on  Lake  Michigan,  by  stage,  a  distance  of  seventy- 
five  miles,  thence  by  steamer  to  Chicago.  An  alter- 
native would  have  been  to  use  the  stage  to  Niles,  thence 
a  river-boat  up  the  St.  Joseph  River  to  St.  Joseph, 


FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST       53 

also  on  Lake  Michigan,  and  a  steamer  across  the  lake 
to  Chicago.  A  local  Benton  Harbor  historian,  versed 
in  the  lore  of  the  period,  says  of  the  latter  route  that 
"palatial  river  boats  were  running  up  and  down  the 
St.  Joseph  River  in  1848.  .  .  .  This  was  a  very  noted 
and  picturesque  trip  in  those  days,  and  it  is  possible 
that  Lincoln  followed  this  route." 

The  last  leg  of  the  journey  home  from  Chicago  can 
only  be  surmised.  At  that  time  the  Chicago  and  Alton, 
the  direct  route  to  Springfield,  had  not  been  built.  Lin- 
coln may  have  come  back — after  all  his  wandering — by 
the  stage-coach.  However,  enough  has  been  given  in  the 
above  rapid  survey  of  his  travels  in  1848  to  show  the 
condition  of  the  railroads  at  that  time.  It  undoubtedly 
brought  Lincoln  back  home  with  a  wide  and  thorough 
first-hand  knowledge  of  traffic  conditions,  which  he  was 
to  put  to  excellent  use  in  his  later  public  life,  as  well 
as  in  the  practice  of  law.  He  was  no  longer  a  provincial ; 
he  was  a  man  of  the  world. 

On  February  13,  1849,  on  his  return  to  Congress,  we 
observe  our  "Lone  Star"  addressing  the  House  "On  the 
Bill  Granting  Lands  to  the  States  to  Make  Railroads 
and  Canals."  He  favored  the  bill  and  sought  earnestly 
to  meet  and  combat  the  objections  of  those  who  op- 
posed it. 

"What  motive,"  he  asked,  "would  tempt  any  set  of 
men  to  go  into  an  extensive  survey  of  a  railroad  which 
they  did  not  intend  to  make?  What  good  would  it  do? 
Do  men  act  without  motive  ?  Do  business  men  commonly 
go  into  an  expenditure  of  money  which  could  be  of  no 
account  to  them?" 

This  is  the  last  speech  that  Lincoln  made  in  Congress, 


54        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

of  which  there  is  any  record,  and  its  specious  reason- 
ing sounds  strange  to-day  only  by  virtue  of  the  fact 
that  we  are  all  familiar  with  a  certain  class  of  Ameri- 
can promoters. 

A  month  or  two  later  Lincoln  left  Washington  for 
home  again,  but  by  what  route  we  know  not.  However, 
he  was  not  done  with  the  capital  city.  In  June  he  re- 
turned, seeking  an  appointment  as  Commissioner  of  the 
General  Land  Office,  located  there.  But  despite  the  fact 
that  the  new  administration  felt  that  some  reward  was 
due  Lincoln  for  his  efforts  in  the  campaign,  the  plum 
was  given  to  a  rival  aspirant. 

In  the  latter  part  of  July  he  again  journeyed  east, 
with  his  wife,  likely  reaching  Philadelphia  by  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  route.  This  passage  has  been 
unnoticed  by  all  biographers  and  other  writers,  and  our 
knowledge  comes  from  the  fact  that  on  July  31  he 
registered  at  the  famous  summer  resort,  Cape  May,  as 
having  arrived  from  Philadelphia. 

Cape  May,  New  Jersey,  at  that  time  boasted  the 
largest  hotel  in  the  United  States,  the  Mount  Vernon, 
which  was,  however,  burned  down  six  years  later.  In 
addition  there  were  the  Philadelphia  House,  Cape  May 
House,  Arctic  Hotel,  Congress  Hall,  and  the  Mansion 
House,  which  latter  hostelry  Lincoln  and  his  wife  pat- 
ronized. It  was  run  by  William  S.  Hooper,  grand- 
father of  State  Senator  Lewis  T.  Stevens,  of  Cape  May 
County,  the  writer's  informant  as  to  this  visit  of  Lin- 
coln. 

Cape  May,  we  are  told,  had  been  a  summer  resort, 
and  advertised  as  such  in  the  Philadelphia  newspapers, 
since  1804,  and  had  contained  large  hotels  since  1816. 


FIRST  JOURNEYS  TO  THE  EAST       55 

At  the  time  of  Lincoln's  sojourn  it  had  a  residential 
population  of  about  fifteen  hundred,  but  during  the 
summer  season  those  within  its  borders  numbered  from 
five  to  ten  thousand. 

The  Mansion  House  was  a  famous  hotel  in  its  day, 
and  the  register  wherein  appears  the  words  "A.  Lincoln 
&  wife  24<  Phila."  is  still  intact.  Senator  Stevens  says 
by  way  of  explanation  that  the  Lincolns  evidently 
occupied  Room  No.  24  in  the  hotel  and  that  it  was  the 
custom  for  many  of  the  tourists  to  register  from  the 
place  where  they  last  happened  to  be.  He  has  made 
an  examination  of  contemporary  Philadelphia  news- 
papers and  finds  no  mention  made  of  Lincoln  as  going 
through  the  city  or  stopping  at  any  hotel  there,  ex- 
plaining it  on  the  ground  that  Lincoln  being  "only  an 
Ex-Congressman,"  and  not  yet  a  national  figure  was 
probably  the  true  reason. 

Among  the  others  registering  at  the  Mansion  House 
that  day,  were  John  S.  Irick  and  wife,  accompanied 
by  their  son,  then  a  lad  of  twelve,  from  Vincentown, 
New  Jersey.  Irick  was  an  acquaintance  of  Lincoln,  the 
two  families  making  the  trip  from  Philadelphia  to- 
gether, and  it  is  of  interest  to  note  that  he  later  be- 
came a  Union  general  during  the  War. 

Other  arrivals  for  July  31  included  residents  of 
Philadelphia,  New  York  City,  Charleston,  S.  C,  and 
Dublin,  Ireland.  The  third  name  registered  below  Lin- 
coln's was  that  of  Louis  Davis,  captain  of  the  Ohio, 
and  the  fifth  below  Davis's  was  Captain  Clark  of  the 
Traveler,  the  two  river  steamers  having  arrived  at  Cape 
May  that  day  from  Philadelphia.  It  is  impossible  to 
find  out  on  which  one  of  them  Lincoln  came. 


56        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

There  were  four  steamers  running  at  that  time,  two 
going  each  way  every  day  in  the  week,  except  Sunday, 
when  there  was  no  traveling  done.  Each  boat  would 
come  down  the  Delaware  one  day  and  return  the  next, 
the  scheduled  leaving  time  at  each  end  of  the  run  being 
7  a.  m.  and  the  arriving  time  4<  p.  m.  At  Cape  May  they 
landed  at  what  was  called  Steamboat  Landing,  now 
Cape  May  Point,  three  miles  from  the  town,  and  the 
passengers  were  conveyed  in  hacks  from  the  landing  to 
the  hotels  and  cottages.  The  fare  from  Philadelphia 
to  Cape  May  and  return  was  $3.50,  according  to  con- 
temporary Philadelphia  newspapers. 

There  is  no  record  of  how  long  the  Lincolns  re- 
mained at  Cape  May.  It  must  have  been  a  purely  rec- 
reational visit,  and  as  play  spells  were  rare  in  this 
man  who  had  struggled  up  from  poverty,  as  a  boy,  and 
throughout  life  had  tasks  of  constantly  increasing  mag- 
nitude set  before  him,  his  biographers  have  overlooked 
the  incident.  But  we  like  to  think  of  him  here  on  the 
beach  spending  one  sunny  day  after  another,  boating, 
fishing,  bathing,  idling  on  the  sand,  and  enjoying  the 
carefree  hours  which  were  denied  him  in  his  boyhood, 
as  in  the  stormy  days  to  come. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

LINCOLN  AS  ATTORNEY  FOR  THE 
ILLINOIS  CENTRAL 

Lincoln's  term  in  Congress  was  limited  to  two  years, 
and  he  was  not  reelected.  He  had  not  made  himself 
popular  with  his  constituents  by  his  outspoken  stand 
against  the  Mexican  War,  and  by  fighting  the  admis- 
sion of  Texas  as  a  slave-holding  state.  Thus  early  in 
his  political  life  he  became  recognized  as  an  opponent 
of  slavery,  and  it  made  him  unpopular  with  a  faction 
even  in  his  home  state. 

He  returned  home  to  take  up  the  practice  of  law 
again,  and  for  the  next  few  years  we  find  him  appear- 
ing in  various  cases  affecting  the  railroads,  as  was  but 
natural.  He  was  not  known,  however,  as  a  railroad  at- 
torney, although  he  accepted  a  retainer  from  the  Il- 
linois Central.  There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to 
whether  this  connection  was  continuous,  or  not.  Henry 
C.  Whitney,  who  was  an  associate  attorney  with  Lin- 
coln in  this  railroad  litigation,  affirms  that  it  was  not; 
while  present-day  officials  of  the  Illinois  Central  believe 
that  it  was. 

Mr.  J.  G.  Drennan,  connected  with  the  legal  depart- 
ment of  the  corporation,  and  an  authority  on  the  sub- 
ject of  Lincoln's  relations  to  it,  says  in  a  communica- 
tion to  the  writer:  "My  understanding  is  that  Mr. 
Lincoln  was  continuously  one  of  the  attorneys  for  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  from  its  organiza- 

57 


58        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

tion  until  he  was  elected  President.  He  was  not  a 
salaried  attorney,  but  his  employment,  no  doubt,  was 
similar  to  that  of  our  present  local  attorneys,  say  at 
Springfield,  Illinois.  An  annual  pass  is  given  them  as 
a  retainer.  All  of  our  business  is  referred  to  them  in 
that  vicinity,  and  when  the  services  are  performed, 
the  usual  fee  is  paid." 

Colonel  Anderson,  in  his  series  of  articles  running  in 
the  Illinois  Central  Magazine,  in  1913,  says:  "The  Hon. 
Jiames  F.  Joy,  the  leading  railroad  lawyer  at  that  time, 
became  in  1852  the  chief  counsel  for  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Railroad  Company,  when  ...  he  retained  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  as  local  attorney  at  Springfield,  to  which, 
by  Lincoln's  influence,  the  state  capital  had  been 
moved  from  Vandalia.  As  the  local  attorney  for  the  road 
under  those  formative  conditions,  Lincoln  had  plenty 
to  do." 

In  an  article  in  the  same  magazine  for  February, 
1922,  Mr.  Drennan  says  in  referring  to  Lincoln's  re- 
tention: "In  1852  he  was  employed  by  James  F.  Joy, 
then  general  counsel,  to  represent  the  company  in  liti- 
gation at  Springfield,  the  state  capital,  and  generally 
in  central  Illinois.  He  continued  to  serve  the  Illinois 
Central  as  one  of  its  lawyers  until  his  election  to  the 
presidency.  Records  still  in  existence  disclose  that  he 
was  consulted  frequently  and  that  his  opinions  were 
highly  respected." 

On  the  other  hand,  Mr.  Jesse  W.  Weik,  inheritor  of 
the  Herndon  manuscripts  and  a  Lincoln  authority, 
writes:  "Mr.  Lincoln,  as  I  understand,  had  no  regular 
employment  as  attorney.  .  .  .  According  to  Mr.  Whit- 
ney, who  for  many  years  represented  the  Illinois  Cen- 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL     59 

tral  in  the  courts  of  Champaign,  McLean,  and  other 
counties  in  that  region,  Mr.  Lincoln  frequently  as- 
sisted him  in  caring  for  the  interests  of  that  road.  But 
the  connection  was  not  continuous." 

In  his  "Real  Lincoln,"  Mr.  Weik  quotes  from  a 
lengthy  conversation  he  once  had  with  Whitney  as  to 
his  estimate  of  Lincoln  as  a  lawyer,  in  which  he  said 
that  "as  attorney  for  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  I 
had  authority  to  employ  additional  counsel  whenever 
I  chose  to  do  so,  and  in  Judge  Davis'  circuit  I  fre- 
quently applied  to  Lincoln  when  I  needed  aid.  I  never 
found  him  unwilling  to  appear  in  behalf  of  a  great 
'soulless  corporation.'  In  such  cases  he  always  stood  by 
me,  and  I  always,  of  course,  tried  to  win." 

The  writer  is  of  the  opinion  that  after  a  certain 
period  Lincoln  was  carried  on  the  rolls  as  an  employee, 
certainly  on  no  salaried  or  "regular  employment"  basis, 
as  Mr.  Weik  expresses  it,  but  on  a  pecuniary  arrange- 
ment, as  Mr.  Drennan  explains,  similar  to  the  one  now 
in  force  with  their  local  attorneys.  We  know  that  he 
carried  an  annual  pass  over  their  line,  and  that  he 
never  appeared  against  this  road  in  any  cases  carried 
to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  as  he  did  in  the 
case  of  several  other  roads,  mention  of  which  is  made 
in  another  chapter.  But  the  continuity  of  his  service  did 
not  extend  as  far  back  in  the  road's  formative  period 
as  the  officials  claim,  as  the  following  correspondence 
written  in  the  latter  part  of  1853  proves. 

Under  date  of  September  12,  Lincoln  addressed  a 
communication  to  Thompson  R.  Webber,  Clerk  of  the 
Court  of  Champaign  County,  which  is  self-explanatory. 
It  ran  as  follows : 


60        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"On  my  arrival  here  to  court  I  find  that  McLean 
County  has  assessed  the  land  and  other  property  of  the 
Central  Railroad,  for  the  purpose  of  county  taxation. 
An  effort  is  about  to  be  made  to  get  the  question  of  the 
right  to  so  tax  the  Co.  before  the  court,  and  ultimately 
before  the  Supreme  Court,  and  the  Co.  are  offering  to 
engage  me  for  them.  As  this  will  be  the  same  question 
I  have  had  under  consideration  for  you,  I  am  somewhat 
trammelled  by  what  has  passed  between  you  and  me, 
feeling  that  you  have  the  prior  right  to  my  services,  if 
you  choose  to  secure  me  a  fee  something  near  such  as  I 
can  get  from  the  other  side.  The  question  in  its  magni- 
tude to  the  Co.  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  counties  in 
which  the  Co.  has  land,  on  the  other,  is  the  largest  law 
question  that  can  now  be  got  up  in  the  State ;  and  there- 
fore, in  justice  to  myself,  I  cannot  afford,  if  I  can  help 
it,  to  miss  a  fee  altogether.  If  you  choose  to  release  me, 
say  so  by  return  mail,  and  then  an  end.  If  you  wish  to 
retain  me,  you  better  get  authority  from  your  court, 
come  directly  over  in  the  Stage,  and  make  common  cause 
with  the  county." 

Three  days  later  John  B.  Thomas,  Judge  of  Cham- 
paign County,  wrote  Webber  at  some  length,  referring 
to  the  anticipated  lawsuit.  He  also  seems  to  have  re- 
alized early  the  importance  of  the  case  and  the  neces- 
sity for  securing  good  legal  talent.  The  Mr.  Jaquith 
mentioned  in  his  communication  was  the  County  Asso- 
ciate Judge,  Jesse  W.  Jaquith. 

At  Home,  Sept.  15th,  1853. 

Mr.  T.  R.  Webber 
Dear  Sir: — 

I  did  not  get  home  until  late  last  night  and  in  order 
to  communicate  with  you  certainly  this  morning  I  send 


tfx^cZCtfin    £&*>*>    ^^c-e-w    £*j~c~£<+-<s    ££Zs£[i~^/   ^ru^rCZZ^j^  &*~*v 


o~y.    fjf  A^fcj   xf/feC^ 


try 


,£j  /vCuZZf 


<* — u~c      t^U^^tt^o    i^/  fir  jJL(s,  <£#.  /?S7>,   4^&-^£& 

Courtesy,    Illinois   Central   Railroad 


LEGAL  PAPERS  WRITTEN  BY  LINCOLN 

Facsimile  of  an  opinion  furnished  by  Lincoln  concerning  the  con- 
traction of  the  charter  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company, 
iven  at  the  request  of  the  company  in  1858. 


(/Uav&T   £t      &L~*Z&i~^    JZa^***?     />*a-«_*--^/  (>*~+^jCZ^Z-<S>    4»s^. 


^x^^C  sj* £&,    &*cX~   t^<£o  s£k^,    rt^rU  /0-eJZ^Z^>  ^^^*yiL,x 


-  —  "JL 


ZZ+^j;     £L~~~<is  /^Src    l^xr^u    ks~&>    /3^C"CZZU,    Z^&Z^-J 


\7  /LZZa^jfcr^j      /~/?v-0»</      <?-+<-<s*~^j     £s£*~<s 


4?&>    A~*~e^t~*fSC^    ^£—»     '>—#—*»/     C*-*  ,&--e~^+    /^*z+s  -vy^ 

**tyC^  J.  MSI  <^L^rtL 


0-0  . 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL     61 

my  little  boy  up  with  a  line.  I  fully  concur  with  your 
opinion  that  no  time  is  to  be  lost  in  securing  the  services 
of  Mr.  Lincoln  and  hope  you  or  Mr.  Jaquith  will  leave 
immediately  for  Bloomington,  confer  with  the  authori- 
ties of  McLean  and  take  such  measures  as  the  circum- 
stances may  suggest  as  to  the  fee  to  be  offered  Mr.  Lin- 
coln. I  have  only  this  to  say  that  we  have  no  right  to 
expect  his  services  for  a  trifle  and  in  this  respect  have  no 
hesitation  in  giving  you  full  authority  to  contract  for  a 
fee  in  proportion  to  the  importance  of  the  claim.  I 
would  however  suggest  that  you  draw  from  the  Treas- 
ury the  sum  of  fifty  dollars  and  take  it  with  you  as  a 
retaining  fee  (you  need  not  give  it  all  if  less  will  do) 
and  contract  for  an  additional  contingent  fee  such  as 
may  be  necessary  even  to  $500.  I  would  further  recom- 
mend if  Mr.  Jaquith  agrees  that  an  order  be  entered  on 
the  record  of  the  County  Court  authorizing  you  to 
make  contract  with  Mr.  Lincoln  or  any  other  lawyer 
that  may  be  necessary  to  carry  out  the  object  in 
view.  .  .  . 

I  do  not  know  but  we  had  best  get  the  assistance  of 
some  other  able  counsel  as  well  as  Mr.  Lincoln.  Say 
Judge  Breese,  Archibald  Williams,  Logan  or  J.  T. 
Stuart.  .  .  . 

Yours  as  ever 

John  B.  Thomas. 

Under  date  of  October  3,  Lincoln  wrote  to  Mason 
Brayman,  the  Illinois  Central  attorney  located  at  Chi- 
cago, this  brief  note : 

"Neither  the  county  of  McLean  nor  any  one  on  its 
behalf  has  yet  made  any  engagement  with  me  in  rela- 
tion to  its  suit  with  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  on  the 
subject  of  taxation.  I  am  now  free  to  make  an  engage- 


62        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ment  for  the  road,  and  if  you  think  of  it  you  may  'count 
me  in.'  Please  write  me  on  receipt  of  this.  I  shall  be  here 
at  least  ten  days." 

Now  what  are  we  to  gather  from  this  correspond- 
ence? As  evidenced  by  Lincoln's  first  communication, 
he  had  undoubtedly  been  approached  by  persons  repre- 
senting the  counties  involved,  as  well  as  by  the  railroad. 
There  being  no  question  of  ethics  involved,  the  attorney 
at  Springfield  considered  it  the  proper  thing  to  enlist 
his  services  on  the  side  promising  the  highest  remunera- 
tion— and  so  we  find  him  appearing  for  the  railroad. 

This  was  the  first  suit  on  record,  in  which  Lincoln 
acted  for  the  Illinois  Central,  it  being  carried  to  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  state  on  account  of  its  impor- 
tance. Lincoln  and  James  F.  Joy  argued  the  case  for 
the  road,  in  the  higher  court,  and  the  decision  was  ren- 
dered in  its  favor. 

Originally  brought  in  McLean  County  as  a  suit  in 
chancery  to  enjoin  the  collection  of  the  tax  which  had 
been  assessed  by  the  county  assessor,  the  case  had  gone 
against  the  corporation.  Thereupon  it  was  appealed  to 
the  state  Supreme  Court.  In  handing  down  an  opinion 
reversing  the  judgment  of  the  Circuit  Court,  Chief 
Justice  Scates  sustained  these  points: 

"It  is  within  the  constitutional  power  of  the  legisla- 
ture to  exempt  property  from  taxation,  or  to  commute 
the  general  rate  for  a  fixed  sum.  The  provisions,  in  the 
charter  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Compan}^  ex- 
empting its  property  from  taxation,  upon  the  payment 
of  a  certain  proportion  of  its  earnings,  are  constitu- 
tional." 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL    63 

The  Illinois  Central  people  themselves  claim  that  this 
was  probably  the  most  important  of  the  many  cases 
that  Abraham  Lincoln  handled  for  their  road.  Its  ef- 
fects were  far-reaching. 

"The  case,"  says  Mr.  Drennan,  "involved  an  inter- 
pretation of  the  charter  of  the  company.  The  charter 
provides  that  the  company,  in  lieu  of  all  other  taxes, 
shall  pay  into  the  state  treasury  annually  an  amount 
equal,  at  least,  to  seven  per  cent  of  the  gross  revenue 
derived  from  its  charter  lines  in  Illinois.  McLean 
County  took  the  position  that  the  exemption  from  all 
other  taxes  applied  only  to  state  taxes,  and  sought  to 
levy  county  taxes  against  the  property  of  the  company 
in  McLean  County.  .  .  .  The  importance  of  the  Mc- 
Lean County  suit  can  be  realized  when  it  is  reflected 
that,  if  the  company  had  lost,  every  county,  city  and 
school  district  in  Illinois  through  which  the  road  ran 
or  which  contained  property  of  the  company  would 
have  had  the  right  to  assess  and  collect  local  taxes,  add- 
ing to  the  considerable  burden  imposed  upon  the  rev- 
enues of  the  company  by  the  seven  per  cent  contract." 

For  his  services  in  this  suit,  Lincoln  received  the 
largest  fee  by  far  of  any  that  he  acquired  during  his 
entire  legal  career.  To  insure  its  collection,  he  himself 
had  to  resort  to  litigation,  whether  friendly  or  other- 
wise, and  it  has  been  deemed  appropriate  that  this  mat- 
ter should  be  separately  considered  under  another 
chapter. 

In  speaking  of  this  particular  time  in  the  career  of 
Abraham  Lincoln,  Frederick  Trevor  Hill,  in  his  study 
of  "Lincoln  the  Lawyer,"  says  that  "he  argued  and  won 
the  McLean  County  case  for  the  Illinois  Central,  pre- 


64        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

pared  and  appeared  in  the  McCormick  reaper  action, 
argued  no  less  than  thirteen  appeals  in  the  court  of 
last  resort,  and  otherwise  spent  the  most  active  year 
and  a  half  in  his  entire  professional  career." 

In  1856  Lincoln's  services  were  again  brought  into 
requisition  on  a  question  concerning  the  construction 
of  the  company's  charter,  although  his  name  does  not 
appear  in  the  Supreme  Court  Reports  as  attorney.  The 
corporation  submitted  the  matter  to  Lincoln  who  wrote 
out  his  opinion.  This  the  company  filed  away  for  future 
reference  in  the  litigation  which  followed.  The  name  of 
the  Illinois  Central  does  not  appear  as  party  to  the  suit 
which  was  argued  before  the  State  Supreme  Court  in 
session  at  Ottawa,  during  the  April  term,  1857. 

Commenting  on  the  opinion  furnished  by  Lincoln 
and  made  use  of  in  this  litigation  "on  the  rights  of  set- 
tlers under  the  national  preemption  laws  and  the  rela- 
tive rights  of  the  railroad  company  growing  out  of 
grants  made  to  the  latter,"  John  T.  Richards,  of  the 
Chicago  Bar,  says  that  "the  questions  were  compli- 
cated, but  the  opinion  was  short  and  concise.  It  reveals 
abundant  evidence  of  careful  research  and  a  thorough 
familiarity  with  the  legal  questions  involved." 

In  the  December  term  of  the  Supreme  Court  held  at 
Springfield  that  year  we  find  Abraham  Lincoln  repre- 
senting the  Illinois  Central  in  two  cases  involving  dam- 
age to  live  stock  while  in  transit,  in  both  of  which  he 
was  associated  with  Henry  C.  Whitney.  The  major  suit 
which  the  corporation  attorneys  handled  to  a  success- 
ful conclusion,  concerned  an  alleged  shrinkage  on  a 
shipment  of  four  hundred  head  of  cattle  from  Urbana 
to  Chicago,  the  Supreme  Court  reversing  the  verdict 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL     65 

reached  by  a  jury  of  Coles  County  which  had  awarded 
the  live  stock  shippers  damages  to  the  amount  of 
$1,200.  The  other  suit,  for  $600,  went  against  the  rail- 
road. 

It  may  have  been  in  relation  to  one  of  the  foregoing 
cases  that  Whitney  told  this  story :  "In  a  railway  case 
we  were  trying,"  he  said,  "the  opposing  lawyer  tried  to 
score'  a  point  by  stating  that  the  plaintiff  was  a  flesh- 
and-blood  man,  with  a  soul  like  the  jurymen  had,  while 
our  client  was  a  soulless  corporation." 

This  was  Lincoln's  reply  with  reference  to  the  ac- 
cusation :  "Counsel  avers  that  his  client  has  a  soul.  This 
is  possible,  but  from  the  way  he  has  testified  under  oath 
in  this  case,  to  gain,  or  hope  to  gain,  a  few  paltry  dol- 
lars, he  would  sell,  nay,  has  already  sold,  his  little  soul 
very  low.  But  our  client  is  but  a  conventional  name  for 
thousands  of  widows  and  orphans  whose  husbands'  and 
parents'  hard  earnings  are  represented  by  this  defend- 
ant, and  who  possess  souls  which  they  would  not  swear 
away  as  the  plaintiff  has  done  for  ten  million  times  as 
much  as  is  at  stake  here." 

Whitney  also  gives  the  following  incident  as  occur- 
ring during  the  trial  of  one  of  their  railroad  cases. 
"Once  I  had  an  important  railroad  suit  that  I  secured 
Lincoln's  aid  in,  and  as  the  able  counsel  on  the  other 
side  was  dealing  out  heavy  'wisdom  licks'  at  us,  I  got 
alarmed,  and  spoke  to  Lincoln  about  it.  He  sat  in- 
flexibly calm  and  serene,  and  merely  remarked:  'All 
that  is  very  easily  answered,'  and  when  his  time  came 
he  blew  away  what  seemed  to  me  as  almost  an  unan- 
swerable argument  as  easily  as  a  beer-drinker  blows 
off  the  froth  from  his  foaming  tankard." 


X  » 


66        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Lawrence  Weldon,  a  fellow  attorney  of  the  circuit, 
relates  that  in  1858  or  1859  Lincoln  and  C.  H.  Moore 
were  attending  to  the  litigation  for  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Railroad  in  Dewitt  County.  A  case  came  up,  which 
for  some  reason  or  other,  the  company  did  not  want 
tried  at  that  term  of  the  court. 

"We  are  not  ready  for  trial,"  attorney  Lincoln  said. 

"Why  is  not  the  company  ready  to  go  on  trial?" 
asked  Judge  Davis,  who  was  presiding. 

"We  are  embarrassed  by  the  absence,  or  rather  want 
of  information  from  Captain  McClellan,"  "was  the 
reply. 

"Who  is  Captain  McClellan,"  Davis  asked,  "and  why 
is  he  not  here?" 

"All  I  know  of  him,"  said  Lincoln,  "is  that  he  is  the 
engineer  of  the  railroad,  and  why  he  is  not  here  de- 
ponent saith  not." 

During  the  last  two  or  three  years  of  Lincoln's  con- 
nection with  the  road,  George  B.  McClellan — the  later 
famous  general  of  the  Civil  War — then  following  his 
profession  of  civil  engineering,  acquired  a  leading  posi- 
tion with  the  railroad  and  was  frequently  brought  into 
contact  with  the  Springfield  attorney.  "Long  before  the 
war,"  says  the  general  in  his  memoirs,  "when  Vice- 
President  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company,  I 
knew  Mr.  Lincoln,  for  he  was  one  of  the  counsel  of  the 
company.  More  than  once  I  have  been  with  him  in  out- 
of-the-way  county-seats  where  some  important  case  was 
being  tried,  and,  in  the  lack  of  sleeping  accommoda- 
tions, have  spent  the  night  in  front  of  a  stove  listening 
to  the  unceasing  flow  of  anecdotes  from  his  lips.  He  was 
never  at  a  loss,  and  I  could  never  quite  make  up  my 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL     67 

mind  how  many  of  them  he  had  really  heard  before,  and 
how  many  he  invented  on  the  spur  of  the  moment.  His 
stories  were  seldom  refined,  but  were  always  to  the 
point." 

In  speaking  of  the  legal  standing  which  Abraham 
Lincoln  had  acquired  in  Illinois  in  the  late  fifties,  Rich- 
ards says  that  while  Lincoln  was  one  of  the  counsel  for 
the  Illinois  Central,  he  "in  that  capacity  was  recog- 
nized as  a  lawyer  of  no  ordinary  learning  and  ability." 
Hill  adds  that  when  he  was  attorney  for  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  it  was  "the  greatest  corporation  in 
the  state,  and  one  which  doubtless  had  its  choice  of 
legal  talent." 

Mr.  Drennan  informs  the  writer  that  the  length  of 
the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company,  at  the  time 
Lincoln  was  one  of  its  attorneys,  was  between  seven 
and  eight  hundred  miles.  The  engines,  cars,  and  equip- 
ment were  of  the  old  type  used  in  that  day  upon  all  the 
railroads.  The  roadbed  was  of  the  same  inferior  grade. 

Professor  F.  I.  Herriott,  of  Des  Moines,  says:  "In 
the  spring  of  1859  Mr.  Lincoln  visited  Iowa, — and  un- 
der circumstances  that  indicate  the  solid  character  of 
Mr.  Lincoln's  close  relations  with  powerful  industrial 
interests  that  are  always  potent  and  present  in  political 
counsels.  Some  time  in  April,  probably  the  latter  part, 
he  was  attending  court  at  Galena.  He  appeared  in  some 
cases  affecting  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company 
— a  corporation  that  had  employed  him  almost  from 
the  time  of  the  incorporation  of  the  company  in  1849. 
He  had  won  an  important  case  for  the  company,  and 
between  it  and  some  later  hearings  or  proceedings  he 
made  a  visit  to  Dubuque,  nearly  opposite  Galena,  stop- 


68        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ping  for  a  day  and  a  night  at  the  Julien  House,  a  well- 
known  hostelry  of  that  city. 

"He  came  with  a  party  of  officials  of  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Company.  He  rode  in  a  private  car,  on  his  own 
pass  furnished  him  in  his  capacity  as  attorney  for  the 
company.  The  distinction  of  a  private  car  and  the 
privilege  of  free  transportation  greatly  impressed  some 
of  the  young  Republican  leaders  of  Dubuque  .  .  . 
who  attended  at  the  Julien  House  to  observe  the  not- 
ables. It  is  not  clear  whether  Mr.  Lincoln's  visit  to 
Dubuque  was  primarily  in  connection  with  the  official 
party  of  the  railroad  company,  then  greatly  interested 
in  securing  control  of  a  western  terminus  in  Dubuque 
and  extensions  into  and  through  Iowa,  or  whether  it 
was  taken  on  his  own  initiative  on  account  of  private 
business  or  pleasure  and  happened  to  coincide  with  the 
official  party's  visit.  .  .  . 

"The  visit  in  and  of  itself  was  not  of  particular  po- 
litical consequence.  The  circumstances  of  the  visit,  how- 
ever, in  the  writer's  judgment,  bring  into  view  a  fact 
of  the  greatest  significance.  They  exhibit  the  close,  not 
to  say  intimate  relations,  Mr.  Lincoln  had  as  a  lawyer 
with  great  and  powerful  industrial  corporations:  fac- 
tors of  greatest  potency  in  the  decisions  of  political 
bodies." 

We  now  come  to  the  last  case  which  Abraham  Lin- 
coln handled  for  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Com- 
pany, and  carried  to  the  state  Supreme  Court.  It  like- 
wise was  the  last  case  he  ever  argued  before  that  tri- 
bunal. In  fact,  the  final  decision  was  not  made  until 
after  he  was  seated  in  the  presidential  chair  at  Wash- 
ington. 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL     69 

The  case  goes  back  to  December,  1857,  when  we  find 
Lincoln  on  the  21st  of  that  month  writing  "as  a  friend" 
to  Jesse  K.  Dubois,  then  serving  as  State  Auditor,  as 
follows : 


"Dear  Dubois :  J.  M.  Douglas  of  the  I.  C.  R.  R.  Co. 

is  here  and  will  carry  this  letter.  He  says  they  have  a 
large  sum  (near  $90,000)  which  they  will  pay  into  the 
treasury  now,  if  they  have  an  assurance  that  they  shall 
not  be  sued  before  January  1859 — otherwise  not.  I 
really  wish  you  would  consent  to  this.  Douglas  says  they 
can  not  pay  more  and  I  believe  him. 

"I  do  not  write  this  as  a  lawyer  seeking  an  advantage 
for  a  client ;  but  only  as  a  friend,  only  urging  you  to  do 
what  I  think  I  would  do  if  I  were  in  your  situation.  I 
mean  this  as  private  and  confidential  only,  but  I  feel  a 
good  deal  of  anxiety  about  it." 

Richards  states  that  the  "docket  of  the  Supreme 
Court  shows  that  this  case  was  argued  orally  by 
Stephen  T.  Logan  on  behalf  of  the  State,  and  by  J.  M. 
Douglas  and  Mr.  Lincoln  on  behalf  of  the  railroad  com- 
pany, on  January  12,  I860,  and  that  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  arguments  the  court  took  the  case  under  advise- 
ment." It  was  not  finally  decided,  as  we  have  stated, 
until  later,  at  the  November  term,  1861.  Concerning  it, 
officials  of  the  railroad  say:  "This  was  a  case  of  con- 
siderable importance  and  it  was  largely  due  to  the 
efforts  of  Mr.  Lincoln  that  judgment  was  rendered  in 
favor  of  the  company." 

A  few  years  later  we  find  the  relations  of  Lincoln 
and  his  old  client,  the  Illinois  Central,  far  different. 


70        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Now  as  Chief  Executive  of  the  Nation,  he  was  in  a  posi- 
tion to  confer  favors  and  at  the  same  time  expedite  the 
Government's  business. 

From  almost  the  beginning  of  the  War,  the  Illinois 
Central  became  a  potent  factor  in  the  moving  of  sup- 
plies and  troops  to  the  front.  The  division  extending 
from  Centralia  to  Cairo,  over  a  hundred  miles  in 
length,  was,  as  one  who  had  charge  of  it  said,  "a  thor- 
oughfare for  the  armies  going  South,  and  funeral  trains 
coming  North." 

Active  opposition  soon  developed  at  Washington  to 
paying  the  corporation  for  such  transportation,  on  the 
ground  that  the  original  Land  Grant  specifically  pro- 
vided that  all  supplies  and  troops  of  the  United  States 
should  be  carried  over  the  road  without  charge.  Simon 
Cameron  was  Secretary  of  War  at  this  time,  and 
Thomas  A.  Scott,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  was 
Assistant  Secretary. 

On  August  15,  1861,  Cameron  addressed  a  communi- 
cation to  President  W.  H.  Osborne,  of  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral offering  an  allowance  of  two  cents  per  mile  for 
passenger  travel  less  a  discount  of  thirty-three  and  one 
third  per  cent ;  and  the  freight  rates  allowed  other  rail- 
road companies  less  a  similar  discount,  was  made,  as  "a 
proper  compensation." 

This  did  not  settle  the  matter,  however,  and  the  con- 
troversy seems  to  have  dragged  on  for  a  couple  of 
years.  It  was  at  last  brought  to  the  personal  attention 
of  President  Lincoln.  In  May,  1863,  he  wrote  the  fol- 
lowing letter  exhibiting  his  usual  good  judgment  to 
Secretary  Stanton,  who  had  succeeded  Cameron  in  the 


ATTORNEY  FOR  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL    71 

War  portfolio.  This  communication  has  never  appeared 
in  print  before,  and  is  worth  while  as  showing  Abraham 
Lincoln's  tendency  to  cut  red-tape,  and  substitute 
therefor  a  "gentlemen's  agreement." 

Washington,  May  23,  1863. 

Hon.  Sec.  of  War, 
My  dear  Sir: 

In  order  to  continue  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  a 
large  grant  of  land  was  made  by  the  United  States  to 
the  State  of  Illinois,  which  land  was  again  given  to  the 
Railroad  Company  by  the  State,  in  certain  provisions 
of  the  Charter.  By  the  U.  S.  Grant,  certain  privileges 
were  attempted  to  be  secured  from  the  contemplated 
Railroad  to  the  U.  S.  and  by  the  Charter  certain  per 
centage  of  the  income  of  the  road  was  to  be  from  time 
to  time  paid  to  the  State  of  Illinois.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  present  war  the  Railroad  did  certain  carrying  for 
the  U.  S.  for  which  it  claims  pay,  and  as  I  understand, 
the  U.  S.  claims  that  at  least  part  of  this  the  road  was 
bound  to  do  without  pay.  Though  attempts  have  been 
made  to  settle  the  matter,  it  remains  unsettled.  Mean- 
while the  Road  refuses  to  pay  the  percentage  to  the 
state.  This  delay  is  working  badly;  and  I  understand 
the  delay  exists  because  of  there  being  no  definite  deci- 
sion whether  the  U.  S.  will  settle  its  own  accounts  with 
the  Railroad,  or  will  allow  the  state  to  settle  it,  and  ac- 
count to  the  state  for  it.  If  I  had  the  leisure  which  I 
have  not,  I  believe  I  could  settle  it ;  but  prima  facie  it 
appears  to  me  we  better  settle  the  account  ourselves,  be- 
cause that  will  save  us  all  questions  as  to  whether  the 
state  deals  fairly  with  us  in  the  settlement  of  our  ac- 
count with  a  third  party — the  Railroad. 


72        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

I  wish  you  would  see  Mr.  Butler,  late  our  State 
Treasurer,  and  see  if  something  definite  can  not  be 
done  in  the  case. 

Yours  truly, 

A.  Lincoln 

The  result  of  his  efforts  at  adjustment  is  seen  in 
the  following  excerpt  of  a  letter  dated  eleven  days 
later,  written  by  Quartermaster  General  M.  C.  Meigs 
to  General  Allen,  Chief  Quartermaster  of  the  Western 
Department  of  the  United  States  Army: 

"The  enclosed  copy  of  a  report  of  the  Qr.  Master 
General  in  relation  to  the  settlement  of  claims  of  the  Illi- 
nois Central  Rail  Road  Company  for  transportation  of 
troops,  etc.,  during  the  early  part  of  the  war,  with  the 
approval  of  the  Secretary  thereon,  is  transmitted  for 
your  information  and  guidance.  .  .  . 

"You  will  examine  the  claims  of  the  above  named 
company,  when  presented,  and  allow  them,  for  all  serv- 
ice performed  prior  to  March  3d,  1862,  their  tariff  in 
accordance  with  the  last  clause  of  the  circular  issued 
from  this  office,  dated  May  1st,  1862,  provided  it  does 
not  exceed  the  enclosed  rates,  a  deduction  of  33%  per 
cent  on  account  of  grant  of  land  to  be  made  from  the 
gross  amount  of  the  bills  thus  made  out." 


CHAPTER    IX 

LINCOLN'S  LARGEST  RAILROAD  FEE 

While  Lincoln  was  acting  as  attorney  for  the  Illinois 
Central,  in  1853,  he  represented  that  road  in  a  highly 
important  case,  and  won  it.  Thereupon  he  sent  in  his 
bill  for  $5,000 — a  large  fee  for  those  days  and  the 
high-water  mark  for  Lincoln,  who  was  still  considered  a 
country  lawyer.  The  resulting  suit  on  his  own  behalf 
against  the  railroad,  to  collect  his  fee,  forms  one  of  the 
most  interesting  episodes  in  his  legal  career. 

At  this  time  William  H.  Herndon  was  Lincoln's  law 
partner,  and  his  version  of  the  incident  is  given  in  his 
life  of  Lincoln.  While  his  account  is  circumstantial, 
later  authorities  have  controverted  various  points  in  it. 
Herndon  says : 

"Probably  the  most  important  law  suit  Lincoln  and 
I  conducted  was  one  in  which  we  defended  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  in  an  action  brought  in  McLean 
County,  Illinois,  in  August  1853,  to  recover  taxes  al- 
leged to  be  due  the  county  from  the  road.  The  Legisla- 
ture had  granted  the  road  immunity  from  taxation, 
and  this  was  a  case  intended  to  test  the  constitutionality 
of  the  law. 

"The  road  sent  a  retainer  fee  of  $250.  In  the  lower 
court  the  case  was  decided  in  favor  of  the  railroad.  An 
appeal  to  the  Supreme  Court  followed,  and  there  it  was 
argued  twice,  and  finally  decided  in  our  favor.  This  last 
decision  was  rendered  some  time  in  1855. 

73 


74        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"Mr.  Lincoln  soon  went  to  Chicago  and  presented 
our  bill  for  legal  services.  We  only  asked  for  $2,000 
more.  The  official  to  whom  he  was  referred, — supposed 
to  have  been  the  Superintendent  George  B.  McClellan 
who  afterwards  became  the  eminent  general, — looking 
at  the  bill  expressed  great  surprise. 

"  'Why,  sir,'  he  exclaimed,  'this  is  as  much  as  Daniel 
Webster  himself  would  have  charged.  We  cannot  allow 
such  a  claim.' 

"Stung  by  the  rebuff,  Lincoln  withdrew  the  bill,  and 
started  for  home.  On  the  way  he  stopped  at  Blooming- 
ton.  There  he  met  Grant  Goodrich,  Archibald  Williams, 
Norman  B.  Judd,  O.  H.  Browning  and  other  attorneys, 
who,  on  learning  of  his  modest  charge  for  such  valuable 
services  rendered  the  railroad,  induced  him  to  increase 
the  demand  to  $5,000,  and  to  bring  suit  for  that  sum. 

"This  was  done  at  once.  On  the  trial  six  lawyers 
certified  that  the  bill  was  reasonable,  and  judgment  for 
that  sum  went  by  default.  The  judgment  was  promptly 
paid.  Lincoln  gave  me  my  half,  and  much  as  we  de- 
precated the  avarice  of  great  corporations,  we  both 
thanked  the  Lord  for  letting  the  Illinois  Central  Rail- 
road fall  into  our  hands." 

Mr.  Weik,  collaborator  with  Herndon  and  himself 
an  indefatigable  Lincoln  investigator,  in  his  recent 
"Real  Lincoln"  puts  the  concluding  sentence  in  a 
slightly  different  setting. 

"The  judgment  was  finally  paid,"  Herndon  told 
Weik  in  relating  his  version  of  the  case,  "and  Lincoln 
gave  me  my  half.  He  brought  the  money  down  from 
Bloomington  one  evening  and  sent  me  word  to  come 


(&Cc£fM>    erf '  (JLtO^JT^   4 

erf  q,  /l£jl+j    ^/ifty^A^     cr*s  X^*J  <*£i~<&4S  ^vy^5 
P&C  /I^Jt    ptff^    Aa^^r^^^o  s&*^Z£J^t>   <a—> ^ 


Courtesy,    Illinois    Central    Railroad 

papers  tn  Lincoln's  suit  against  the  Illinois  central 


fk^   fsK*>       /&*^**J    tfU^r^OO^CC^  (jQ^tJ&i~pft    <rr&Z*J  ^ 


V**. 


*^/v  e£—  /for  dSjTfi.a-d 


For  legal  services  in  an  important  case,  Lincoln  presented 
for  $5,000.  The  Railroad  contested  the  amount,  and  a  friend 


a  bill 
__iendly  suit 
was  brought,  in  1857,  which  resulted  in  a  victory  for  the  plaintiff. 
The  above  facsimile  is  Lincoln's  statement  of  his  claim,  in  his  own 
handwriting. 


LINCOLN'S  LARGEST  RAILROAD  FEE    75 

to  the  office.  It  was  after  dark  and  when  he  had  pushed 
my  share  of  the  proceeds  across  the  table  to  me,  he  cov- 
ered it  for  an  instant  with  his  hand,  smiled,  and  said: 

"  'Billy,  it  seems  to  me  it  will  be  bad  taste  on  your 
part  to  keep  on  saying  the  severe  things  I  have  heard 
from  you  about  railroads  and  other  corporations.  The 
truth  is,  instead  of  criticizing  them,  you  and  I  ought  to 
thank  God  for  letting  this  one  fall  into  our  hands.'  " 

Seventeen  years  before  the  appearance  of  Herndon's 
work,  Ward  H.  Lamon  in  his  ill-fated  biography  of 
Lincoln  had  referred  to  the  matter  briefly,  stating  that 
when  Lincoln  presented  a  bill  for  $5,000  for  his  serv- 
ices, "the  company  treated  him  with  such  rude  in- 
solence that  he  contented  himself  with  a  formal  demand, 
and  then  immediately  instituted  suit  on  the  claim." 

Lamon  was  a  contemporary  attorney  and  associate 
of  Lincoln,  whom  the  latter  took  to  Washington  in 
1861  where  he  acted  as  Marshal  until  the  close  of  Lin- 
coln's career.  Lamon  had  purchased  much  of  the  manu- 
script used  in  his  book  from  Herndon,  to  whom  he  was 
undoubtedly  indebted  for  the  story  of  Lincoln's  law- 
suit. 

William  E.  Curtis,  in  his  "True  Abraham  Lincoln," 
following  the  lead  of  Herndon,  declares  that  the  bill  for 
$2,000  originally  presented,  was  declined  "on  the 
ground  that  it  was  as  much  as  a  first-class  lawyer  would 
charge"  which,  of  course,  aroused  the  indignation  of 
Lincoln.  Curtis,  however,  corrects  the  impression  left 
by  Herndon  as  to  McClellan's  having  been  the  official 
who  snubbed  Lincoln/ At  the  time  spoken  of,  1855, 
McClellan  was  in  Europe  as  a  Commissioner  from  the 


Sju    (>•(,(•  ,  fa    4-1, ,  &0 


76        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

United  States  Army,  and  it  was  not  until  the  beginning 
of  1857  that  he  became  connected  with  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Railroad. 

It  seems  probable  that,  if  there  was  any  snubbing 
done  at  that  time,  James  F.  Joy,  an  influential  counsel 
for  the  railroad,  did  it.  According  to  Henry  C.  Whit- 
ney, a  fellow-attorney  of  the  road,  when  Lincoln's  bill 
came  in  and  Joy  had  to  audit  it,  he  disallowed  it  and 
spoke  contemptuously  of  Lincoln  as  a  "common  coun- 
try lawyer."  The  latter  then  brought  suit  in  the 
McLean  Circuit  Court.  The  solicitor  of  the  railroad, 
John  M.  Douglas,  consulted  with  Whitney  about  the 
matter. 

"I  said  that  even  if  the  amount  was  too  large,"  re- 
marks Whitney,  "we  could  not  afford  to  have  Lincoln 
as  our  enemy,  instead  of  an  ally,  on  the  circuit,  and  I 
insisted  further  that  he  would  beat  us  anyhow.  Douglas 
paid  the  fee." 

A  half-century  after  this  memorable  controversy,  in 
1905,  the  Illinois  Central  published  its  own  side  of  the 
case.  It  appeared  in  a  handsome,  limited  brochure  en- 
titled "Abraham  Lincoln  as  Attorney  for  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  Company."  This  really  worth-while 
publication  was  the  work  of  John  G.  Drennan,  one  of 
the  road's  leading  attorneys,  who  had  delegated  to 
Charles  L.  Capen,  of  Bloomington,  the  task  of  getting 
at  the  truth  regarding  Lincoln's  suit  against  the  road. 

After  referring  to  the  issues  involved  in  the  original 
suit,  Mr.  Drennan  goes  on  to  say  that  when  "Mr.  Lin- 
coln presented  a  bill  for  his  fee  .  .  .  for  five  thousand 
dollars,  the  then  general  counsel  of  the  road  advised 
Mr.  Lincoln  that  while  he  recognized  the  value  of  his 


LINCOLN'S  LARGEST  RAILROAD  FEE     77 

services,  still,  the  payment  of  so  large  a  fee  to  a  western 
country  lawyer  without  protest  would  embarrass  the 
general  counsel  with  the  board  of  directors  in  New 
York,  who  would  not  understand,  as  would  a  lawyer, 
the  importance  of  the  case  and  the  consequent  value  of 
Mr.  Lincoln's  services. 

"It  was  intimated  to  Mr.  Lincoln,  however,  that  if 
he  would  bring  suit  for  his  bill  in  some  court  of  com- 
petent jurisdiction,  and  judgment  were  rendered  in 
his  favor,  the  judgment  would  be  paid  without  ap- 
peal. .  .  . 

"When  the  case  was  reached  for  trial  on  Thursday 
morning,  June  18,  1857,  no  one  appearing  for  the  de- 
fendant, judgment  was  taken  by  default  for  five  thou- 
sand dollars.  That  afternoon  John  M.  Douglas,  one  of 
the  company's  general  solicitors  at  that  time,  arrived 
from  Chicago  too  late  of  course  to  attend  the  trial. 
He  told  Mr.  Lincoln  that  default  placed  him  in  an  em- 
barrassing position,  that  he  (Lincoln)  ought  to  have 
the  fee,  and  asked  him  to  permit  the  default  to  be  set 
aside,  and  the  case  tried.  To  this  Mr.  Lincoln  readily 
consented,  and  the  case  was  set  down  for  trial  on  Tues- 
day, June  23,  1857.  On  the  trial  of  the  case  Mr.  Doug- 
las called  Mr.  Lincoln's  attention  to  the  fact  that  two 
hundred  dollars  had  already  been  paid  him  on  account 
of  this  fee,  which  Mr.  Lincoln  said  he  had  forgotten, 
and  accordingly  reduced  his  demand  to  four  thousand 
eight  hundred  dollars. 

"Mr.  Lincoln  had  taken  the  depositions  of  some  of 
the  leading  lawyers  of  the  State  as  to  what  was  a  rea- 
sonable fee.  .  .  .  He  tried  his  own  case,  and  as  he  got 
up  to  speak  to  the  jury  a  button  on  his  trousers  gave 


78        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

way.  Saying  'Wait  a  minute  'til  I  fix  my  galluses,'  he 
took  a  knife,  whittled  a  stick  and  used  that  in  place  of 
the  button. 

"Mr.  David  Davis,  afterward  a  Justice  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  United  States,  was  the  presiding 
judge.  The  jury  returned  a  verdict  for  Mr.  Lincoln  for 
the  full  amount  of  four  thousand  eight  hundred  dollars, 
which  was  promptly  paid  by  the  company." 

There  are  in  existence  to-day  the  original  legal  docu- 
ments bearing  on  the  case,  in  the  handwriting  of  Abra- 
ham Lincoln.  These  have  been  reproduced  by  the  Illi- 
nois Central  in  their  publications,  and  include  the 
"praecipe,"  the  declaration,  the  bill  rendered  for  pro- 
fessional services,  the  notice  to  take  depositions,  and 
Lincoln's  own  brief.  The  latter  contains  the  following 
pertinent  notes  as  to  the  important  points  to  be  stressed 
in  presenting  his  case  before  the  court. 

Retainer. 

Brayman  &  Joy's  letters,  with  proof  of  their  signa- 
tures, and  that  they  were  the  active  agents  of  the  Com- 
pany— 

That  I  did  the  service,  arguing  the  case  twice. 

What  was  the  question — How  decided — &  on  what 
point. 

The  record — the  final  order — &  the  opinion — 

That  /,  and  not  Joy,  made  the  point  &  argument  on 
which  the  case  turned — 

The  Company  own  near  two  million  acres,  and  their 
road  was  through  twenty-six  counties — 

That  half  a  million,  put  at  interest,  would  scarcely 
pay  the  taxes — 

Are  or  not  the  amount  of  labor,  the  doubtfulness  and 


£Zuut    &+**</  Zzfcuj  C&j  £s&**s  £<&   cucjEZ**  &j*.^r<j 


Courtesy,   Illinois  Central   Railroad 

FURTHER   PAPER    IN    LINCOLN'S   LAWSUIT 

Facsimile  of  Lincoln's  brief,  made  for  his  own  use,  of  important 
points  to  be  presented  in  his  suit  against  the  Illinois  Central  Rail- 
road. He  contends:  "That  $5,000  is  not  an  unreasonable  fee  in  this 
case." 


"^-—-      ^g^^,    fc&JC  fL~^a-&, 


,£AU,  <pc     /3<<rznLj&Z  J~~fc  //f-  Sty 

Courtesy,   Illinois   Central   Railroad 

FURTHER    PAPER    IN    LINCOLN'S    LAWSUIT 

Facsimile  of  plaintiff's  notice  to  take  depositions  in  the  case  of 
Lincoln  vs.  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company,  April  term,  1857- 


LINCOLN'S  LARGEST  RAILROAD  FEE    79 

difficulty  of  the  question,  the  degree  of  success  in  the 
result;  and  the  amount  of  pecuniary  interest  involved, 
not  merely  in  this  particular  case,  but  covered  by  the 
principle  decided,  and  thereby  secured  to  the  client,  all 
proper  elements,  by  the  custom  of  the  profession  to 
consider  in  determining  what  is  a  reasonable  fee  in  a 
given  case. 

That  $5,000  is  not  an  unreasonable  fee  in  this  case. 

The  court  records  still  in  evidence  substantiate  the 
story  of  Lincoln's  suit  and  its  successful  outcome.  Judge 
Davis,  under  whom  the  suit  was  tried,  is  quoted  as  say- 
ing that  "Mr.  Lincoln  never  before  received  such  a  fee, 
and  rarely  as  much  in  the  aggregate  as  $5,000  a  year." 

It  is  also  a  fact  that  Lincoln  gave  half  of  the  fee  to 
his  partner,  Herndon,  although  he  himself  had  done 
the  arguing  and  handled  the  original  case  for  the  rail- 
road. 

Lincoln's  bill  and  the  resulting  suit  have  been  the 
subject  of  wide  differences  of  opinion  on  the  part  of 
succeeding  biographers — some  accepting  Herndon's 
version,  and  others  inclining  toward  the  railroad.  The 
difference  existing  between  the  contending  parties,  how- 
ever, was  more  than  likely  handled  in  a  friendly  man- 
ner during  the  course  of  the  suit,  as  the  testimony  of 
Mr.  Capen,  a  trustworthy  investigator,  would  indicate. 
This  is  also  proven  by  the  fact  that  the  professional  re- 
lations of  attorney  and  railroad  were  not  severed.  Abra- 
ham Lincoln,  as  the  company  states,  continued  to 
handle  its  litigation  afterwards,  the  same  as  he  had  done 
before. 


CHAPTER    X 

OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES 

As  more  and  more  railroads  were  projected  or  built 
through  Illinois,  the  attorney  in  Sangamon  County 
found  himself  more  and  more  in  demand.  We  have  al- 
ready emphasized  the  fact  that  Lincoln's  rise  was  co- 
incident with  that  of  the  railroads.  His  career  during 
the  forties  and  fifties  leading  up  to  the  Presidency  con- 
tinually illustrates  the  point. 

In  addition  to  his  work  for  the  Illinois  Central,  we 
find  him  representing  other  roads,  such  as  the  Chicago 
and  Alton,  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  and  the  Rock  Is- 
land. A  study  of  the  records  of  these  companies  throws 
valuable  light  upon  Lincoln's  legal  methods,  and  his 
growing  reputation. 

The  Alton  and  Sangamon  Railroad  Company  was 
incorporated  in  1847  by  the  Fifteenth  General  Assem- 
bly of  the  Illinois  State  Legislature.  The  proposed  road 
was  to  extend  from  Alton  to  Springfield. 

"There  has  been  a  tradition  in  Springfield  ever  since 
I  can  remember,"  writes  Mr.  William  L.  Patton  of  the 
legal  department  of  the  present  Chicago  and  Alton 
road,  "  that  the  original  ordinances  whereby  the  Alton 
and  Sangamon  Railroad  Company  acquired  its  right 
of  way  in  Third  Street  in  the  city  of  Springfield,  were 
drafted  by  Mr.  Lincoln,  but  a  reference  to  the  Jour- 
nals of  the  City  Council  of  the  dates  of  the  passage  of 

80 


OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  81 

the  ordinances  gives  no  information  whatever  as  to  the 
connection  of  Mr.  Lincoln  therewith,  and  a  search  of 
the  deposit  boxes  in  which  the  old  ordinances  were  kept 
fails  to  reveal  the  original  ordinances." 

However,  we  do  know  that  from  1847  to  1850  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  was  connected  with  this  corporation  in  a 
minor  capacity  in  the  law  department,  although  def- 
inite details  are  lacking. 

During  the  years  1851  and  1852  we  find  his  name 
appearing  as  attorney  in  four  different  cases  carried  to 
the  State  Supreme  Court.  In  the  first  two  he  appeared 
alone  in  behalf  of  the  road,  while  in  the  latter  two  the 
firm  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon  handled  the  suits.  Yet  it 
should  be  borne  in  mind  that  during  this  partnership 
the  senior  member  "rode  the  circuit"  and  pleaded  the 
majority  of  the  cases,  while  the  junior  attended  to  the 
office  work. 

Three  of  these  suits  were  decided  in  favor  of  the  rail- 
road, while  the  fourth,  although  affirming  an  assess- 
ment on  the  company  of  $480  damages,  sustained  the 
stand  taken  by  the  road's  attorneys  as  to  an  important 
principle  involved.  All  of  them  were  appealed  from 
Sangamon  County,  Lincoln's  old  friend,  David  Davis, 
being  the  Circuit  Judge  before  whom  the  first  two  were 
originally  heard. 

The  two  suits  argued  by  Lincoln  before  the  Decem- 
ber, 1851,  term  of  the  Supreme  Court  held  at  Spring- 
field, had  to  do  with  unpaid  stock  subscriptions.  James 
A.  Banet,  who  had  subscribed  for  thirty  shares,  and 
Joseph  Klein,  who  had  subscribed  for  five,  sought  to 
be  discharged  from  their  obligations  on  the  ground  that 
alterations  in  the  original  charter  granted  the  com- 


82        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

pany  exonerated  them  from  payment.  The  Supreme 
Court  held  otherwise,  however. 

Just  one  year  later  Lincoln  handled  two  right-of- 
way  cases  for  the  corporation,  winning  the  one  and 
losing  the  other,  his  opposing  attorney  being  Stephen 
T.  Logan. 

In  1853  he  came  into  rather  close  contact  with  the 
engineer  in  charge  of  construction  of  the  Chicago  and 
Mississippi  Railroad,  successor  to  the  Alton  and  Sang- 
amon, then  building  an  extension  out  of  Bloomington. 
When  this  addition  was  completed  the  following  year, 
Lincoln,  by  virtue  of  this  friendship,  was  appointed 
local  attorney  for  the  road  at  Springfield  and  furnished 
with  annual  free  transportation.  This  he  evidently  re- 
ceived for  two  or  three  years,  as  the  following  letter 
accompanying  an  expired  annual  pass  for  1855,  re- 
ceived by  his  friend  Morgan,  testifies : 

Springfield,  Feby.  13, 1856. 

R.  P.  Morgan,  Esq. 
Dear  Sir: 

Says  Tom  to  John  "here's  your  old  rotten  wheelbar- 
row. I've  broke  it,  usin'  on  it.  I  wish  you  would  mend  it, 
'case  I  shall  want  to  borrow  it  this  arternoon." 

Acting  on  this  as  a  precedent,  I  say  "Here's  your  old 
'chalked  hat.'  I  wish  you  would  take  it,  and  send  me 
a  new  one,  'case  I  shall  want  to  use  it  by  the  first  of 
March." 

Yours  truly 
A.  Lincoln. 

This  request  for  renewal  was  couched  in  the  railroad 
parlance  of  that  day,  but  would  be  little  understood 


OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  83 

now.  During  that  early  period  of  railroading  in  Illinois, 
the  fortunate  possessor  of  an  annual  pass  would  say  to 
the  conductor  going  through  the  train,  "I  have  a 
chalked  hat,"  or  more  briefly,  "I  chalk,"  referring  to 
the  practice  of  the  conductors  of  placing  a  white  ticket 
in  the  hat  band  of  the  "dead  heads." 

As  noted  elsewhere,  Abraham  Lincoln  was  not  car- 
ried on  the  rolls  of  the  corporation  in  1857,  for  it  was 
in  that  year  that  he  acted  as  opposing  counsel  in  the 
famous  Dalby  case. 

A  letter  addressed  to  Joel  A.  Matteson,  in  control  of 
the  St.  Louis,  Alton  and  Chicago  Railroad,  as  it  was 
then  called,  written  by  Lincoln  in  the  fall  of  1858, 
shortly  after  the  close  of  the  Lincoln-Douglas  debates, 
testifies  to  the  fact  that  the  Springfield  attorney  was 
undoubtedly  engaged  at  that  period  to  handle  certain 
litigation  for  the  road.  That  he  did  not  carry  the  mat- 
ter to  a  conclusion  does  not  alter  the  fact. 

"Last  summer,"  he  wrote  under  date  of  November 
25th,  "when  a  movement  was  made  in  court  against 
your  road,  you  engaged  us  to  be  on  your  side.  It  has 
so  happened  that,  so  far,  we  have  performed  no  service 
in  the  case ;  but  we  lost  a  cash  fee  offered  us  on  the  other 
side.  Now,  being  hard  run,  we  propose  a  little  com- 
promise. We  will  claim  nothing  for  the  matter  just 
mentioned,  if  you  will  relieve  us  at  once  from  the  old 
matter  at  the  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance  Company, 
and  be  greatly  obliged  to  boot.  Can  you  not  do  it?" 

This  Joel  A.  Matteson  was  Governor  of  Illinois  from 
1853  to  1857,  and  it  was  largely  through  Lincoln's  in- 
fluence that  he  had  been  defeated  for  United  States 
Senator   by  the  Legislature   in   1855.   Although  un- 


84        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

doubtedly  aware  of  Lincoln's  action,  and  of  the  fact 
that  he  had  appeared  against  the  corporation  in  the 
Dalby  case  six  months  before,  Matteson's  engagement 
of  Lincoln  in  the  summer  of  1858  speaks  volumes  for 
the  high  legal  reputation  which  Abraham  Lincoln  had 
attained  at  that  time. 

Beside  the  several  cases  each  which  he  argued  before 
the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois  for  the  Chicago  and  Al- 
ton, and  Illinois  Central  Railroads,  there  is  record  of 
but  one  other  road  which  Lincoln  represented  before 
that  tribunal,  and  as  that  one,  the  Tonica  and  Peters- 
burg, after  successive  incorporations  and  consolida- 
tions, eventually  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  present- 
day  Chicago  and  Alton,  it  may  appropriately  be  re- 
ferred to  at  this  point. 

This  was  another  unpaid-stock  subscription  case, 
originally  brought  before  a  local  Justice  of  the  Peace 
and  then  taken  to  the  Menard  County  Court.  Here  the 
firm  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon  represented  the  corpora- 
tion, and  losing  the  suit,  appealed  to  the  Supreme 
Court.  Pitted  against  Lincoln  were  the  firm  of  Stuart 
and  Edwards,  and  Thomas  P.  Cowan.  In  this  instance 
the  Court  decided  that  Stein,  the  defendant,  was  not 
obligated  to  pay  the  amount  of  his  subscription  inas- 
much as  "he  did  not  subscribe  in  such  manner  as  to  bind 
him." 

Mr.  Jesse  W.  Weik  is  authority  for  the  statement 
that  the  only  investment  made  by  Lincoln  himself  in 
railroad  stock,  or  stock  of  any  kind  in  a  corporation,  of 
which  we  have  record,  was  in  several  shares  of  old  Alton 
and  Sangamon  Railroad.  He  informs  the  writer  that 


OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  85 

he  has  in  his  possession  a  "list  of  those  persons  in 
Springfield  and  the  vicinity  who  had  the  temerity  to 
subscribe  for  stock  in  a  railroad  company.  The  list  is 
in  Herndon's  handwriting,  but  the  paper  bears  a  para- 
graph or  so  in  Lincoln's  hand.  Four  hundred  and 
eighty-eight  shares  of  stock  were  subscribed  for.  The 
paper  recites  the  fact  that  each  subscriber  agrees  to 
pay  $5  on  each  share  of  stock,  the  balance  to  be  paid 
in  installments  as  called  for  by  the  board  of  directors. 
The  largest  subscription  was  by  Thomas  Lewis,  who 
took  fifty  shares;  John  W.  Bunn  twenty-five  shares; 
N.  W.  Edwards  (Lincoln's  brother-in-law)  twenty 
shares;  John  T.  Stuart  five  shares;  and  Lincoln  him- 
self subscribed  for  six  shares." 

Another  important  case  in  which  Lincoln  figured 
was  on  behalf  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad — 
later  a  part  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  system — and  in- 
volved a  sum  in  excess  of  $300,000.  This  company  was 
incorporated  in  Illinois,  in  1851,  and  the  right  of  way 
extended  from  East  St.  Louis  across  to  the  Wabash 
River  opposite  Vincennes.  Work  was  pushed  actively 
on  the  road  and  it  was  opened  for  business  on  May  1, 
1857.  However,  it  encountered  various  vicissitudes,  and 
while  still  under  construction  was  sold  to  a  certain 
Henry  D.  Bacon.  In  October,  1857,  he  reconvened  all 
his  right,  title,  and  interest  back  to  the  company,  al- 
though in  the  meantime  the  property  had  been  leased 
for  a  term  of  fifteen  years  to  one  George  W.  Jenks. 

Suit  was  brought  by  Bacon  against  the  railroad,  in 
1856,  in  the  U.  S.  District  Court  at  Springfield.  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  was  retained  by  the  railroad.  The  legal 


v 


86        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

aspects  of  the  case  are  set  forth  in  a  brief  signed  by 
Herndon,  his  law  partner,  but  evidently  written  by 
Lincoln  himself.  It  is  as  follows : 

In  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  United  States 
for  the  Southern  District  of  Illinois. 
March  Term  a.  d.  1856. 

United  States  of  America 


Southern  District  of  Illinois 

Henry  D.  Bacon,  who  is  a  citizen  of  the  State  of  Mis- 
souri, plaintiff,  complains  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi 
Railroad  Company,  a  corporation  created  by  and  doing 
business  within,  the  State  of  Illinois,  defendants,  being 
in  custody  &c  of  a  plea  that  they  render  to  the  said 
plaintiff,  the  sum  of  Six  hundred  and  twenty-four  thou- 
sand two  hundred  and  thirty-six  dollars,  and  seventy 
cents,  which  said  defendants  owe  to,  and  unjustly  de- 
tain from  said  plaintiff — 

For  that  whereas,  said  defendants  heretofore,  towit, 
on  the  twenty-eighth  day  of  February  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-six,  at  St. 
Louis,  towit,  at  the  Southern  District  of  Illinois  afore- 
said, made  their  certain  promissory  note  in  writing, 
bearing  date  the  day  and  year  aforesaid,  and  then  and 
there  delivered  said  note  to  Page  &  Bacon,  by  which  said 
note  they,  the  said  defendants,  then  and  there  promised 
to  pay,  one  day  after  the  date  thereof,  to  the  order  of 
the  said  Page  &  Bacon,  the  sum  of  three  hundred  and 
twelve  thousand  one  hundred  and  thirty  three  dollars, 
and  thirty  five  cents,  for  value  received,  negotiable,  and 
payable,  without  defalcation,  with  interest  from  date — • 
And  afterwards,  towit,  on  the  day  and  year  aforesaid, 
at  the  Southern  District  of  Illinois  aforesaid,  the  said 
Page  &  Bacon,  by  their  endorsement  thereon  in  writ- 


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OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  87 

ing,  assigned  said  note  to  the  said  plaintiff,  and  then 
and  there  delivered  the  same  to  the  said  plaintiff.  By 
means  whereof,  and  by  force  of  the  statute  in  such  case 
made  and  provided,  the  said  defendants  then  and  there 
became  liable  to  pay  to  the  said  plaintiff  the  said  sum 
of  money  in  said  note  specified,  according  to  the  tenor 
and  effect  of  the  said  note ;  and  although  the  said  sum  of 
money,  in  said  note  specified,  has  long  since  been  due 
and  payable  according  to  the  tenor  and  effect  of  said 
note,  yet  the  said  plaintiff,  in  fact  says,  that  the  said 
defendants  (although  often  requested  so  to  do)  did  not, 
nor  would  pay  the  said  sum  of  money  in  said  note  speci- 
fied or  any  part  thereof,  to  the  said  plaintiff,  or  other- 
wise howsoever,  but  have  hitherto  wholly  neglected  and 
refused  so  to  do,  whereby  an  action  has  accrued  to  the 
said  plaintiff,  to  demand,  and  have,  of  and  from  the  said 
defendants,  the  said  sum  in  the  said  note  specified,  par- 
cel of  the  said  sum  above  demanded. 

And  whereas  also,  the  said  plaintiff,  afterwards,  to- 
wit,  on  the  third  day  of  March,  in  the  year  aforesaid, 
at  the  Southern  District  of  Illinois  aforesaid,  had  paid, 
laid  out  and  expended,  a  certain  other  sum  of  money, 
towit,  the  sum  of  three  hundred  and  twelve  thousand 
one  hundred  and  thirty  three  dollars  and  thirty  five 
cents,  for  the  said  defendants,  and  at  their  special  in- 
stance and  request,  and  to  be  paid  by  the  said  defend- 
ants to  the  said  plaintiff  when  they  the  said  defendants 
should  be  thereunto  afterwards  requested,  whereby,  and 
by  reason  of  the  said  last  mentioned  sum  of  money  being 
and  remaining  wholly  unpaid  and  action  has  accrued 
to  the  said  plaintiff  to  demand  and  have  of  and  from  the 
said  defendants  the  said  last  mentioned  sum  of  money, 
other  parcel  of  the  said  sum  above  demanded. 

Yet  the  said  defendants  (although  often  requested  so 


88        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

to  do)  have  not  as  yet  paid  the  sum  of  money  above  de- 
manded, or  any  part  thereof ;  but  so  to  do,  have  hitherto 
wholly  neglected  and  refused  and  still  do  neglect  and  re- 
fuse—  To  the  damage  of  the  said  plaintiff  of  one  thou- 
sand dollars  and  therefore  he  brings  his  suit  &c. 

W.  H.  Herndon,  p.  L. 

Endorsed:  Filed  March  4,  1856. 
Geo.  W.  Lowry,  Clerk. 

"Undoubtedly  Mr.  Herndon's  name  was  signed  to 
the  declaration  by  Lincoln,"  says  James  M.  Graham, 
who  is  District  Attorney  for  the  road  at  Springfield 
and  who  investigated  the  court  records,  "as  a  mere  mat- 
ter of  convenience  and  because  the  case  did  not  involve 
a  contest.  The  declaration  consists  of  two  counts:  the 
first  avers  diversity  of  citizenship — Mr.  Bacon  lived  in 
Missouri — the  second  count  is  general  and  avers  money 
laid  out  and  expended,  etc." 

And  finally  we  have  the  judgment  entry,  also  in  the 
handwriting  of  Lincoln : 

Henry  D.  Bacon 

vs. 
The  Ohio  &  Mississippi 
Railroad  Company 

This  day  came  the  plaintiff  and,  on  leave  filed  his 
declaration  herein;  and  thereupon,  Abraham  Lincoln, 
an  Attorney  of  this  court,  entered  the  appearance  of 
said  defendants,  filed  the  authenticated  preamble  and 
resolution  of  said  defendants,  authorizing  their  Vice- 
President  to  execute  their  note,  and  a  Power  of  Attor- 
ney to  confess  a  judgment;  and  also  filed  said  note  and 
Power  of  Attorney,  duly  authenticated,  and  thereupon 
confessed  the  indebtedness  in  the  declaration  mentioned, 


OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  89 

to  the  amount  of  three  hundred  and  twelve  thousand, 
one  hundred  and  thirty-three  dollars  and  thirty-five 
cents,  with  interest  to  the  amount  of  two  hundred  and 
fifty-six  dollars  and  fifty-four  cents,  and  also  costs  of 
suit. 

It  is  therefore  adjudged  by  the  court  that  the  plain- 
tiff recover  of  and  from  the  defendants  the  sum  of  three 
hundred  and  twelve  thousand  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
three  dollars  and  thirty-five  cents,  his  debts  aforesaid, 
and  also  the  further  sum  of  two  hundred  and  fifty-six 
dollars  and  fifty-four  cents,  as  his  damages  herein,  to- 
gether with  his  costs  therein  expended,  and  that  he  have 
execution  therefor. 

Mr.  Graham  elaborates  on  his  opinion  as  to  why  the 
declaration  and  entry  of  appearances  which  also  con- 
tains the  court  order,  were  written  by  Abraham  Lincoln 
himself.  "I  have  no  doubt  in  my  mind,"  he  writes,  "that 
both  these  papers  were  written  by  Mr.  Lincoln.  There 
is  an  individuality  about  his  handwriting  which  is  un- 
mistakable to  one  familiar  with  it.  The  lines  of  his 
handwriting  are  as  distinct — as  Lincolnian — as  the 
lines  in  his  face  or  the  propositions  of  his  arguments." 

It  is  the  opinion  of  present-day  attorneys  of  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  that  the  litigation  was 
probably  friendly. 

"The  amount  of  the  note  and  judgment  was  large  for 
those  days,"  says  Morison  R.  Waite,  General  Solicitor 
of  the  Western  Lines,  "but  it  was  an  agreed  and  not  a 
litigated  matter.  Bacon  had  title  to  the  railroad  com- 
pany's property  under  a  conveyance  pursuant  to  a 
deed  of  trust  at  the  time  he  took  this  judgment.  The 
purpose  must  have  been  to  either  strengthen  his  title 


90        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

or  possibly  reach  other  assets  not  covered  by  the  con- 
veyance." 

"It  seems  to  have  been  a  friendly  suit,"  says  Gra- 
ham, "and  was  important  only  because  it  involved  a 
large  sum  of  money— $312,000." 

All  that  is  known  of  the  later  history  of  the  case,  is 
contained  in  a  letter  written  the  following  year  by 
Abraham  Lincoln  to  a  legal  associate  : 

Springfield,  July  10,  1857. 

Hon.  G.  Koeh2s£k, 
Dear  Sir: 

Your  letter  of  the  8th  to  Lincoln  and  Herndon  was 
received  and  opened  by  Mr.  Herndon  in  my  absence; 
but  finding  it  relating  to  business  with  which  I  was  more 
familiar  he  laid  it  by  till  my  return  which  was  only  yes- 
terday. 

The  judgment  to  Page  &  Bacon  against  the  Ohio 
and  Miss.  Railroad  Company  in  the  United  States 
Court  here,  was  taken,  by  confession  on  a  cognovit,  at 
the  March  term,  1856,  for  the  sum  of  $812,413.74  in- 
cluding costs.  Execution  issued  April  16th,  1856,  which 
was  by  order  of  the  plaintiffs  returned  unsatisfied,  sale 
having  been  postponed  June  6,  1856.  While  it  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  Marshal  it  was  levied  on  the  entire 
property  of  the  road  (as  I  suppose,  a  large  amount  at 
any  rate)  which  levy  remains  undisposed  of. 

Will  you  please  remember  that  our  Sangamon  Cir- 
cuit Court  commences  Aug.  10,  when  I  suppose  our  Quo 
Warranto  cases  will  come  up,  and  when  I  shall  be  glad 
to  have  the  benefit  of  your  legal  assistance. 

Yours  very  truly, 

A.  Lincoln. 


03       I 

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o  • - 


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OTHER  RAILROAD  CASES  91 

The  records  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroads 
further  disclose  that,  in  1858,  the  road  encountered 
financial  difficulties,  a  receiver  being  appointed  in  1860. 
On  June  £,  1862,  the  property  was  sold  on  the  petition 
of  the  second  mortgage  bondholders  for  $480,000. 

What  fee  Abraham  Lincoln  received  for  his  services 
rendered  in  the  Bacon  suit  cannot  be  ascertained,  as 
the  old  files  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad  were 
destroyed  when  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  system  acquired 
the  road. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE 

The  year  1853  is  important  in  railroad  history  in  the 
Middle  West,  as  it  marks  the  beginning  of  the  first  of 
the  railway  bridges  to  span  the  Mississippi  River.  The 
conquest  of  the  Far  West  was  begun.  This  pioneer 
bridge  when  completed  spanned  the  Father  of  Waters 
from  Rock  Island,  Illinois,  to  Davenport,  Iowa.  At  this 
point  in  the  stream  an  island  out  in  the  channel — 
"Rock  Island" — avoided  the  necessity  of  a  straight 
span  clear  across. 

As  the  Rock  Island  Company  itself  has  explained: 
"The  construction  really  involved  three  portions — a 
bridge  across  the  narrow  arm  of  the  river  between  the 
Illinois  shore  and  the  island;  a  line  of  tracks  across 
Rock  Island,  and  a  long  bridge  between  the  island  and 
the  Iowa  shore.  The  channel  of  the  river  passed  very 
close  to  the  west  side  of  the  island,  and  down  the  mid- 
dle of  this  channel  ran  the  boundary  line  between  the 
two  states." 

The  proposed  bridge,  on  what  is  now  a  part  of  the 
main  line  of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  and  Pacific  Rail- 
way, encountered  bitter  opposition.  The  very  idea  of  the 
Mississippi  being  "obstructed"  by  a  bridge  of  any  sort 
aroused  the  antagonism  of  powerful  river  interests. 
Leading  river  towns — St.  Louis  in  particular — saw  that 
with  such  innovations  they  ran  the  risk  of  losing  the 
commercial  advantages,  amounting  almost  to  a  mon- 

92 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE      93 

opoly,  which  they  had  hitherto  enjoyed.  The  river  men 
on  their  part  foresaw  in  the  coming  of  the  railroads  a 
formidable  rival  in  the  field  of  transportation.  The 
building  of  bridges  across  "their"  river  was  added  fuel 
to  the  flame.  They  loudly  insisted  that  such  structures 
would  interfere  with  the  free  transit  of  the  stream. 

This  argument,  so  familiar  to  latter-day  railroad 
people,  was  then  new  and  brought  many  influential  ad- 
herents into  the  camp  of  the  opposition.  Legal  obstacles 
were  put  in  the  way  of  the  Rock  Island  bridge,  but  the 
company  was  able  to  set  them  aside,  and  the  bridge 
was  built. 

The  opposition,  however,  did  not  end  here;  it  only 
bided  its  time  to  make  a  test  case  of  the  whole  matter. 
This  soon  came.  In  May,  1856,  a  steamboat,  the  Effie 
Afton,  struck  one  of  the  piers  of  the  bridge  and  was 
wrecked  and  totally  destroyed  by  fire.  The  lawsuit 
which  resulted  promised  to  be  one  of  the  most  important 
in  the  history  of  railroading  up  to  that  time.  The  owners 
of  the  steamboat  instituted  a  damage  suit  against  the 
railroad  company ;  while  the  latter  maintained  that  the 
so-called  accident  was  intentional.  Incidentally,  a  por- 
tion of  the  bridge  was  burned. 

This  case  with  all  its  interesting  legal  angles  derives 
further  importance  from  the  fact  that  our  Sangamon 
County  lawyer  was  retained  for  the  railroad.  It  reveals 
Lincoln  in  the  plenitude  of  his  powers,  holding  his  own 
against  the  best  legal  talent  of  that  section.  The  time 
was  but  a  few  years  before  he  became  a  national  figure 
in  politics. 

"Who  can  tell  the  true  story  of  the  Effie  Afton, 
that  Louisville-New  Orleans  packet  sent  north  from  St. 


94        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Louis  on  her  first  trip?"  say  the  Rock  Island  manage- 
ment in  a  recent  statement.  "Who  can  describe  the  im- 
pelling thought  that  controlled  this  boat  on  the  morn- 
ing of  May  6th — fourteen  days  after  the  crossing  of 
the  first  train — when  the  boat  proceeded  some  two  hun- 
dred feet  above  the  draw  pier,  and  then,  one  of  her  side 
wheels  stopping,  she  swung  in  against  the  bridge  ?  Who 
can  tell  just  how  the  stove  tipped  over  that  set  fire  to 
the  boat  and  which,  in  its  burning,  destroyed  the  span 
where  it  struck?  Is  it  possible  that  Parker,  the  pilot, 
might  solve  the  riddle  were  he  here?" 

While  the  case  was  pending,  several  officials  of  the 
Chicago  and  Rock  Island  road  met  for  a  conference  in 
the  lobby  of  the  Tremont  Hotel  in  Chicago. 

"This  man  Hurd  and  his  associates  will,  undoubtedly, 
secure  a  favorable  verdict  in  the  lower  court,"  said 
Joseph  Knox,  attorney  of  Rock  Island,  referring  to  the 
plaintiffs. 

"Well,"  replied  Norman  B.  Judd,  general  attorney 
of  the  road  and  a  leading  director,  "we  still  have  the 
United  States  Circuit  Court  open  to  us." 

"And  will  need  a  strong,  popular  man  to  handle  the 
case,"  rejoined  Knox. 

"Well,  gentlemen,"  Judd  went  on,  "there  is  only  one 
man  in  this  country  who  can  take  this  case  and  win  it, 
and  that  is  Abraham  Lincoln." 

"And  who  is  Abraham  Lincoln?"  asked  Henry 
Farnam,  contractor,  construction  engineer,  and  pro- 
moter high  in  railroad  circles. 

"A  young  lawyer  from  Sangamon  County,"  was  the 
reply,  "one  of  the  best  men  to  state  a  case  forcibly  and 
convincingly  that  I  ever  heard.  And  his  personality 


Courtesy,    Chicago,   RocTc   Island   &   Pacific   Railroad 

"AND   WHO  IS  ABRAHAM   LINCOLN?"  ASKED   FARNAM 

When  the  Rock  Island  System  undertook  its  very  important  suit 
against  the  steamboat  and  river  interests,  to  maintain  its  right  to 
build  a  bridge  across  the  Mississippi  River,  the  question  at  once 
arose  as  to  the  best  attorney  to  represent  the  Railroad.  The  above 
query  by  Mr.  Farnam  resulted  in  the  selection  of  the  ''young  lawyer 
from  Sangamon  County/'  who  won  his  case. 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE      95 

will  appeal  to  any  judge  or  jury  hereabouts.  I  heard 
him  first  at  the  Waterways  Convention  here  in  Chicago 
back  in  1847,  when  we  were  after  President  Polk's  scalp 
for  vetoing  as  unconstitutional  the  bill  which  Congress 
had  passed  for  the  improvement  of  rivers  and  the  con-, 
struction  of  harbors  in  our  Lake  Michigan." 

"Let's  get  him  up  here  to-morrow,"  Farnam  said, 
"and  discuss  the  matter." 

"I  would  suggest,"  said  Judd,  "that  we  take  him 
in  your  private  car  and  go  to  Rock  Island,  let  him  look 
the  ground  over,  and  then  abide  by  his  opinion." 

This  was  accordingly  done,  and  a  few  days  later 
while  young  Benjamin  Brayton,  son  of  the  superintend- 
ent under  whose  charge  the  work  of  excavation  had 
been  done  for  the  bridge,  was  sitting  out  on  one  of  the 
spans  of  the  bridge  a  considerable  distance  from  shore, 
he  noticed  a  tall  stranger  standing  beside  him. 

"Do  you  live  around  here,  my  boy?"  asked  attorney 
Lincoln,  for  it  was  he. 

"Yes,  sir,  in  Davenport,"  replied  Brayton. 

"And  what  might  your  name  be?"  Lincoln  went  on. 

"Brayton,  Bud  Brayton,  they  call  me,"  the  boy  an- 
swered ;  "my  dad  helped  build  this  railroad." 

Lincoln  laughed.  "Oh,  I  see,"  he  said. 

Then  he  sat  down  beside  the  youth  on  the  end  of  the 
bridge  ties,  with  his  legs  dangling  towards  the  water. 

"And  I  suppose  you  know  all  about  this  river?"  he 
asked. 

"Well,  I  guess  I  do,"  was  the  reply.  "It  was  here 
when  I  was  born,  and — it's  been  here  ever  since." 

This  sally  evoked  another  laugh  from  the  tall 
stranger. 


96        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"Well,  well,"  he  said;  "I'm  mighty  glad  I  walked 
out  here  where  there  is  not  so  much  opinion  and  a  little 
more  fact.  Now  tell  me,"  he  went  on,  "how  fast  does 
this  water  run  under  here?  Have  you  ever  thought  of 
that?" 

"No,"  said  young  Brayton,  "but  I  know  how  to  find 
out." 

Lincoln  smiled  kindly  down  on  his  companion. 

"I  knew  you  did,"  he  said.  "Tell  me  how,  will  you?" 

"Of  course,"  the  lad  explained,  "if  you  sight  the 
logs  and  brush  coming  down  the  river,  you'll  see  they 
swing  out  from  the  island  up  there  about  three  hun- 
dred yards,  and  then  they  swing  in  again  right  here 
under  the  bridge.  Have  you  got  a  watch?"  he  asked, 
turning  to  his  visitor. 

"Right  here,"  was  the  reply,  as  Lincoln  drew  a 
large  silver  time-piece  from  his  vest  pocket. 

"Now,"  explained  the  boy,  "when  I  spy  a  log  swing- 
ing out  from  the  island,  I'll  tell  you,  and  you  take  the 
time.  Then,  when  it  comes  here  under  us,  you  can  take 
it  again  and  then  we've  got  the  distance  and  the  time. 
Can't  we  figure  it  that  way?" 

Thus  through  the  precocious  intelligence  of  an  ob- 
servant lad  fifteen  years  of  age,  the  Sangamon  County 
lawyer  found  out  what  he  wanted  to  know  concerning 
the  currents  of  the  mighty  "Father  of  Waters."  Years 
later  this  same  youth  became  a  trusted  engineer  of  the 
Rock  Island  Railroad. 

In  August,  while  engaged  in  preparing  his  data 
for  the  trial,  Lincoln  received  a  communication  from 
Governor  Grimes  of  Iowa,  asking  him  to  come  over  to 
his  state  and  make  a  few  political  speeches  for  the  fall 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE      9? 

campaign.  While  desiring  to  accommodate  his  Repub- 
lican friends,  Lincoln  felt  that  he  could  ill  afford  to 
spare  the  time  just  then. 

"I  lost  nearly  all  the  working-part  of  last  year,"  he 
wrote,  "giving  my  time  to  the  canvass ;  and  I  am  alto- 
gether too  poor  to  lose  two  years  together.  I  am  en- 
gaged in  a  suit  in  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  at 
Chicago,  in  which  the  Rock  Island  Bridge  Company  is 
a  party.  The  trial  is  to  commence  on  the  8th  of  Septem- 
ber, and  probably  will  last  two  or  three  weeks.  During 
the  trial  it  is  not  improbable  that  all  hands  may  come 
over  and  take  a  look  at  the  bridge,  and  if  it  were  pos- 
sible to  make  it  hit  right,  I  could  then  speak  at  Daven- 
port." 

It  may  be  remarked  here,  however,  that  "all  hands" 
did  not  get  this  opportunity. 

The  best  legal  talent  available  was  engaged  by  both 
sides  of  the  case.  H.  M.  Wead,  of  Peoria,  T.  D.  Lincoln, 
of  Cincinnati,  and  Corydon  Beckwith,  of  Chicago, 
represented  the  prosecution.  Norman  B.  Judd,  Abra- 
ham Lincoln,  and  Joseph  Knox  acted  as  counsel  for  the 
defense. 

The  trial  opened  on  September  8  with  the  contend- 
ing forces  well  primed.  On  account  of  its  far-reaching 
influence  Chicago  was  filled  with  people  from  far  and 
near,  interested  in  the  proceedings. 

A  contemporary  has  furnished  a  description  of  the 
court-room  in  which  the  case  was  tried. 

"The  court  held  its  sessions,"  says  this  spectator, 
"in  what  was  known  as  the  'Saloon  Building'  on  the 
southeast  corner  of  Clark  and  Lake  streets.  The  room 
appropriated  for  its  use  was  not  more  than  forty  feet 


98        LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

square,  with  the  usual  division  for  the  judge,  clerks 
and  attorneys  occupying  perhaps  twenty  feet  on  the 
farther  side,  and  provided  with  the  usual  furniture. 
The  rest  of  the  room  contained  long  benches  for  the  ac- 
commodation of  the  public.  Near  the  door  was  a  large 
stove  of  the  'box'  pattern  surmounted  by  a  'drum.' 
These  were  common  throughout  the  West  in  those  days, 
when  modern  appliances  were  not  thought  of. 

"Alongside  the  stove  was  drawn  one  of  the  long 
benches,  its  front  and  sides  cut  and  lettered  all  over. 
Here  in  cool  weather  frequently  sat  idlers,  or  weary 
members  of  the  bar,  and  witnesses  in  cases  on  trial." 

We  do  not  think  that  there  is  a  better  statement  of 
the  situation  than  that  given  by  John  T.  Richards, 
Lincoln  authority,  and  Chicago  attorney. 

"The  contention  of  the  plaintiffs,"  says  Mr.  Rich- 
ards, "was  that  the  building  of  piers  in  the  river  con- 
stituted an  obstruction  to  navigation;  and  while  the 
particular  case  here  mentioned  was  a  suit  to  recover 
damages  which  were  sustained  by  the  owners  of  the 
steamboat,  Effie  Afton,  in  consequence  of  that  steam- 
boat having  been  driven  by  the  current,  as  was  claimed, 
against  a  pier  of  the  bridge  at  Rock  Island,  it  was 
hoped  by  the  plaintiff  and  those  in  sympathy  with  him 
that  such  an  amount  of  damages  would  be  recovered 
as  to  make  the  maintenance  of  that  and  other  bridges 
across  the  navigable  streams  unprofitable  to  the  rail- 
road companies,  thereby  compelling  them  to  unload 
their  freight  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  transport  it 
across  by  ferry-boats,  and  reload  it  for  shipment  to  the 
points  of  destination.  If  this  could  have  been  accom- 
plished, the  cost  of  transportation  by  railroad  would 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE      99 

have  been  made  prohibitive  and  the  steamboat  monopoly 
would  have  continued.  For  these  and  similar  reasons 
the  war  between  the  respective  interests  was  relentless." 

The  case  was  legally  docketed  "Hurd  et  al.  v.  Rail- 
road Bridge  Company,"  with  Hon.  John  McLean  of 
the  United  States  Supreme  Court  presiding. 

From  the  day  of  the  opening  of  the  trial  until  the 
20th  of  the  month,  the  time  was  consumed  chiefly  with 
submission  of  the  evidence  pro  and  con  and  the  argu- 
ment of  important  questions  thereby  arising  by  the 
contending  counsel.  A  keen  observer  of  the  proceedings, 
Colonel  Peter  A.  Dey,  a  noted  railroad  engineer,  many 
years  later  said  that  "Mr.  Lincoln's  examination  of  the 
witnesses  was  very  full  and  no  point  escaped  his  notice. 
I  thought  he  carried  it  almost  to  prolixity,  but  when 
he  came  to  his  argument  I  changed  my  opinion." 

"Much  time  was  taken  up  by  testimony  and  conten- 
tions between  counsel,"  says  another,  who  was  a  frequent 
attendant  upon  the  court  sessions,  "and  as  the  partic- 
ipation of  the  St.  Louis  Chamber  of  Commerce  was 
openly  charged,  great  interest  was  manifested  in  the 
evidence  and  the  manner  in  which  it  was  presented. 

"As  the  character  of  the  Mississippi  River  was  de- 
scribed,— the  nature  of  its  currents,  their  velocity  at 
certain  periods,  the  custom  of  navigators  and  pilots  in 
allowance  for  drift,  the  depth  of  water  at  the  'draw' 
of  the  bridge,  the  direction  of  the  piers  in  relation  to 
the  channel,  and  many  other  points  involving  mechanics 
and  engineering  being  drawn  out, — the  spectators 
showed  their  sympathies  unmistakably. 

"Engineers  in  the  service  of  the  government,  civil 
engineers,  pilots,  boat-owners  and  river-men  had  testi- 


100      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

fied  under  the  most  searching  examination.  Lincoln 
seemed  to  have  committed  all  the  facts  and  figures  to 
memory,  and  often  corrected  evidence  so  effectively  as 
to  cause  a  ripple  of  mirth  in  the  audience. 

"During  a  tedious  examination  by  one  of  the  oppos- 
ing counsel,  Lincoln  rose  from  his  chair,  and  walking 
wearily  about, — this  seemed  to  be  his  habit, — at  last 
came  down  the  aisle  between  the  long  benches  toward 
the  end  of  the  room ;  and  seeing  a  vacant  space  on  the 
end  of  the  bench  which  projected  some  distance  beyond 
the  stove,  came  over  and  sat  down. 

"Having  entered  the  room  an  hour  before,  I  sat  on 
the  end,  but,  as  Lincoln  approached,  moved  back  to  give 
him  room.  As  he  sat  down  he  picked  up  a  bit  of  wood, 
and  began  to  chip  it  with  his  knife,  seeming  absorbed, 
however,  in  the  testimony  under  consideration.  Some 
time  passed,  when  Lincoln  suddenly  rose,  and  walking 
rapidly  toward  the  bar,  energetically  contested  the 
testimony,  and  demanded  the  production  of  the  original 
notes  as  to  measurements,  showing  wide  differences. 
Considerable  stir  was  occasioned  in  the  room  by  this 
incident,  and  it  evidently  made  a  deep  impression  as 
to  his  comprehension,  vigilance  and  remembrance  of  the 
details  of  the  testimony." 

During  the  trial,  Judd,  who  lived  in  Chicago,  invited 
Lincoln  to  spend  the  evening  at  his  home,  on  the  shore 
of  Lake  Michigan.  Mrs.  Judd  has  left  a  rather  full 
and  interesting  account  of  this  visit,  and  as  it  reveals 
another  side  of  this  versatile  man,  it  is  worth  while  to 
reproduce  it  here. 

"After  tea,  and  until  quite  late,"  narrated  Mrs. 
Judd,  "we  sat  on  the  broad  piazza,  looking  out  upon 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     101 

as  lovely  a  scene  as  that  which  has  made  the  Bay  of 
Naples  so  celebrated.  A  number  of  vessels  were  avail- 
ing themselves  of  a  fine  breeze  to  leave  the  harbor,  and 
the  lake  was  studded  with  many  a  white  sail.  I  remem- 
ber that  a  flock  of  sea-gulls  were  flying  along  the  beach, 
and  dipping  their  beaks  and  white-lined  wings  in  the 
foam  that  capped  the  short  waves  as  they  fell  upon 
the  shore. 

"While  we  sat  there,  the  great  white  moon  appeared 
on  the  rim  of  the  eastern  horizon,  and  slowly  crept 
above  the  water,  throwing  a  perfect  flood  of  silver  light 
upon  the  dancing  waves.  The  stars  shone  with  the  soft 
light  of  a  midsummer  night,  and  the  breaking  of  the 
low  waves  upon  the  shore,  repeating  the  old  rhythm  of 
the  song  which  they  have  sung  for  ages,  added  the 
charm  of  pleasant  sound  to  the  beauty  of  the  night. 

"Mr.  Lincoln,  whose  home  was  far  inland  from  the 
Great  Lakes,  seemed  greatly  impressed  with  the  won- 
drous beauty  of  the  scene,  and  carried  by  its  impressive- 
ness  away  from  all  thought  of  the  jars  and  turmoil  of 
earth. 

"In  that  mild,  pleasant  voice,  attuned  to  harmony 
with  his  surroundings,  and  which  was  his  wont  when  his 
soul  was  stirred  by  aught  that  was  lovely  or  beautiful, 
he  began  to  speak  of  the  mystery  which  for  ages  en- 
shrouded and  shut  out  those  distant  worlds  above  us 
from  our  own,  of  the  poetry  and  beauty  which  was 
seen  and  felt  by  seers  of  old  when  they  contemplated 
Orion  and  Arcturus  as  they  wheeled,  seemingly  around 
the  earth,  in  their  nightly  course;  of  the  discoveries 
since  the  invention  of  the  telescope,  which  had  thrown 
a  flood  of  light  and  knowledge  on  what  before  was  in- 


102      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

comprehensible  and  mysterious ;  of  the  wonderful  com- 
putations of  scientists  who  had  measured  the  miles  of 
seemingly  endless  space  which  separated  the  planets 
in  our  solar  system  from  our  central  sun,  and  our  sun 
from  other  suns,  which  were  now  gemming  the  heavens 
above  us  with  their  resplendent  beauty. 

"He  speculated  on  the  possibilities  of  knowledge 
which  an  increased  power  of  the  lens  would  give  in  the 
years  to  come;  and  then  the  wonderful  discoveries  of 
late  centuries  as  proving  that  beings  endowed  with  such 
capabilities  as  man  must  be  immortal,  and  created  for 
some  high  and  noble  end  by  Him  who  had  spoken  those 
numberless  worlds  into  existence;  and  made  man  a 
little  lower  than  the  angels  that  he  might  comprehend 
the  glories  and  wonders  of  His  creation. 

"When  the  night  air  became  too  chilling  to  remain 
longer  on  the  piazza,"  continued  Mrs.  Judd,  "we  went 
into  the  parlor,  and,  seated  on  the  sofa,  his  long  limbs 
stretching  across  the  carpet,  and  his  arms  folded  be- 
hind him,  Mr.  Lincoln  went  on  to  speak  of  other  dis- 
coveries, and  also  of  the  inventions  which  had  been 
made  during  the  long  cycles  of  time  lying  between  the 
present  and  those  early  days  when  the  sons  of  Adam 
began  to  make  use  of  the  material  things  about  them, 
and  invent  instruments  of  various  kinds  in  brass  and 
gold  and  silver.  He  gave  us  a  short  but  succinct  account 
of  all  the  inventions  referred  to  in  the  Old  Testament 
from  the  time  when  Adam  walked  in  the  Garden  of 
Eden  until  the  Bible  record  ended,  600  b.  c." 

This  made  an  impression  on  hisr  hostess,  who  was 
evidently  a  lady  of  talents. 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE    103 

"Mr.  Lincoln,"  she  said,  "I  did  not  know  that  you 
were  such  a  Bible  student." 

"I  must  be  honest,  Mrs.  Judd,"  Lincoln  replied,  "and 
tell  you  just  how  I  came  to  know  so  much  about  these 
early  inventions." 

He  explained  that  in  order  to  satisfy  himself,  after 
a  discussion  with  one  of  his  friends  as  to  the  relative 
age  of  the  discovery  and  use  of  precious  metals,  he 
made  a  systematic  research  of  the  Bible  for  data,  and 
became  so  interested  that  he  took  a  full  set  of  notes 
of  the  different  discoveries  and  inventions  mentioned 
therein,  from  which  he  prepared  and  delivered,  at  least 
in  one  instance,  a  lecture  on  "Discoveries  and  Inven- 
tions." 

When  Lincoln  had  left  the  Judd  residence  that  night, 
Mr.  Judd  remarked  to  his  wife :  "I  am  constantly  more 
and  more  surprised  at  Mr.  Lincoln's  attainments  and 
the  varied  knowledge  he  has  acquired  during  years  of 
constant  labor  at  the  Bar,  in  every  department  of 
science  and  learning.  A  Professor  at  Yale  could  not 
have  been  more  interesting  or  more  enthusiastic." 

With  further  reference  to  Lincoln's  share  in  the 
famous  trial,  we  quote  from  Mr.  Richards  again. 

"The  record  of  that  trial  shows  that  Abraham 
Lincoln  was  accorded  the  most  important  position 
among  counsel  for  the  defendant,"  he  says.  "He  made 
the  closing  argument  to  the  jury  on  behalf  of  the  de- 
fendant, and  was  otherwise  active  during  the  trial. 
Had  he  been  other  than  a  high-class  lawyer,  he  would 
not  have  been  employed  as  the  leading  counsel  for  the 
defendant,  or  employed  in  connection  with  that  case. 


104      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

His  address  to  the  jury  was  a  forceful  presentation  of 
the  contentions  of  the  defendant.  His  careful  analysis 
of  the  plaintiff's  claims  and  of  the  evidence  introduced 
at  the  trial  shows  also  a  thorough  familiarity  with  the 
questions  involved." 

Mr.  Frederick  Trevor  Hill,  of  New  York,  in  re- 
ferring to  the  case  says  that  "new  and  vital  questions  of 
law  arose,  which  Lincoln  handled  in  a  masterful  manner 
on  behalf  of  the  Rock  Island  Railroad."  And  again  in 
referring  to  the  bitter  feeling  engendered  at  the  time, 
"under  these  circumstances  it  required  a  cool  head  and 
an  even  temper  to  carry  the  day,  and  Lincoln  was 
equal  to  the  occasion.  His  argument,  one  of  the  few 
legal  speeches  which  have  been  preserved,  was  reported 
by  Robert  R.  Hitt,  and  it  demonstrates  Lincoln's  con- 
spicuous ability  in  presenting  close  questions  of  law, 
and  indicates  his  notable  development  as  a  lawyer." 

Hill's  allusion  to  the  argument  as  reported  by  Hitt, 
refers  to  the  stenographic  report  made  for  the  Chicago 
Daily  Press,  issue  of  September  24,  1857. 

On  the  22nd,  Abraham  Lincoln  commenced  his  argu- 
ment before  the  jury.  Colonel  Peter  A.  Dey  says  that 
"Lincoln  went  over  all  the  details  with  great  minute- 
ness, until  court,  jury  and  spectators  were  wrought  up 
to  the  crucial  point.  Then  drawing  himself  up  to  his 
full  height,  he  delivered  a  peroration  that  thrilled  the 
court-room  and,  to  the  minds  of  most  persons,  settled 
the  case." 

Another  spectator,  a  star  witness  for  the  railroad 
interests,  was  O.  P.  Wharton,  a  Rock  Island  newspaper 
man,  who  says  that  Lincoln  "conducted  the  case  for 
the  Bridge  Company  with  such  masterly  ability  that 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     105 

the  opposition  had  no  show  of  any  consequence  for  its 
contention  against  the  right  to  bridge  the  Mississippi 
River  at  any  point  where  the  interests  of  transporta- 
tion east  and  west  required  such  a  structure." 

Judge  Blodgett,  of  Chicago,  has  left  more  detailed 
recollections  of  his  impressions.  "The  two  points  relied 
upon  by  the  opponents  of  the  bridge,"  he  says,  "were : 
First,  that  the  river  was  the  great  waterway  for  the 
commerce  of  the  valley,  and  could  not  legally  be  ob- 
structed by  a  bridge.  Second,  that  this  particular 
bridge  was  so  located  with  reference  to  the  channel  of 
the  river  at  that  point  as  to  make  it  a  peril  to  all  water 
craft  navigating  the  river  and  an  unnecessary  obstruc- 
tion to  navigation. 

"The  first  proposition  had  not  at  that  time  been 
directly  passed  upon  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  although  the  Wheeling  Bridge  case  in- 
volved the  question ;  but  the  court  had  evaded  a  decision 
upon  it,  by  holding  that  the  Wheeling  Bridge  was  so 
low  as  to  be  an  unnecessary  obstruction  to  the  use  of 
the  river  by  steamboats.  The  discussion  of  the  first 
proposition  on  the  part  of  the  bridge  company  devolved 
mainly  upon  Abraham  Lincoln. 

"I  listened  with  much  interest  to  his  argument  on  this 
point,  and  while  I  was  not  impressed  by  it  as  a  specially 
eloquent  effort  (as  the  word  eloquent  is  generally  un- 
derstood), I  have  always  considered  it  as  bne  of  the 
ablest  efforts  I  ever  heard  from  Mr.  Lincoln  at  the  Bar. 
His  illustrations  were  apt  and  forcible,  his  statements 
clear  and  logical,  and  his  reasons  in  favor  of  the  policy 
(and  necessarily  the  right)  to  bridge  the  river,  and 
thereby  encourage  the  settlement  and  building  up  of 


106      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

the  vast  area  of  fertile  country  to  the  west  of  it,  were 
broad  and  statesmanlike. 

"The  pith  of  his  argument  was  in  his  statement  that 
one  man  had  as  good  a  right  to  cross  a  river  as  another 
had  to  sail  up  or  down  it;  that  these  were  equal  and 
mutual  rights  which  must  be  exercised  so  as  not  to 
interfere  with  each  other,  like  the  right  to  cross  a  street 
or  highway  and  the  right  to  pass  along  it.  From  this 
undeniable  right  to  cross  the  river  he  then  proceeded 
to  discuss  the  means  for  crossing.  Must  it  always  be  by 
canoe  or  ferryboat?  Must  the  products  of  all  the  bound- 
less fertile  country  lying  west  of  the  river  for  all  time 
be  compelled  to  stop  on  its  western  bank,  be  unloaded 
from  the  cars  and  loaded  upon  a  boat,  and  after  the 
transit  across  the  river,  be  reloaded  into  cars  on  the 
other  side,  to  continue  their  journey  east?  In  this  con- 
nection he  drew  a  vivid  picture  of  the  future  of  the 
great  West  lying  beyond  the  river,  and  argued  that  the 
necessities  of  commerce  demanded  that  the  bridges 
across  the  river  be  a  conceded  right,  which  the  steam- 
boat interests  ought  not  to  be  allowed  to  successfully 
resist,  and  thereby  stay  the  progress  of  development 
and  civilization  in  the  region  to  the  west. 

"While  I  cannot  recall  a  word  or  sentence  of  the 
argument,  I  well  remember  its  effect  on  all  who  listened 
to  it,  and  the  decision  of  the  court  fully  sustained  the 
right  to  bridge,  so  long  as  it  did  not  unnecessarily  ob- 
struct navigation." 

Abraham  Lincoln's  argument  lasted  two  days.  At  the 
end  of  the  first  day,  as  Joseph  Knox,  one  of  the  as- 
sociate counsel,  sat  down  at  the  dinner  table  of  Judd  at 


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THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE    107 

whose  home  he  was  being  entertained,  he  became  greatly 
excited. 

"Lincoln  has  lost  the  case  for  us,"  he  said.  "The  ad- 
missions he  made  in  regard  to  the  currents  in  the  Mis- 
sissippi at  Rock  Island  and  Moline  will  convince  the 
court  that  a  bridge  at  that  point  will  always  be  a  serious 
and  constant  detriment  to  navigation  on  the  river." 

But  Judd  was  not  disturbed.  He  replied  that 
Lincoln's  admissions  in  regard  to  the  currents  were 
facts  that  could  not  be  denied.  They  only  proved  that 
the  bridge  should  have  been  built  at  a  different  angle 
to  the  stream,  and  that  a  bridge  so  built  could  not  in- 
jure the  river  as  a  navigable  stream. 

The  argument  of  Lincoln  as  preserved  to  us  by  Hitt 
is  worth  noting  in  detail.  From  a  careful  perusal  of  it, 
we  observe  that  the  points  as  recalled  by  Judge  Blodgett 
were  brought  out  in  the  first  part  of  his  plea,  while  the 
latter  was  devoted  to  more  complicated  matters:  the 
river  currents,  their  velocity,  the  position  of  the  piers, 
engineering  problems  of  river  navigation,  and  the  like, 
all  being  handled  with  mathematical  precision. 

Lincoln  started  in  by  saying  that  it  was  not  his 
purpose  to  assail  anybody,  but  that  he  expected  to 
grow  earnest  as  he  proceeded. 

"There  is  some  conflict  of  testimony  in  the  case,  but 
one  quarter  of  such  a  number  of  witnesses  seldom  agree, 
and  even  if  all  were  on  one  side,  some  discrepancy  might 
be  expected.  We  are  to  try  to  reconcile  them  and  to  be- 
lieve that  they  are  not  intentionally  erroneous  as  long 
as  we  can,"  he  went  on. 

He  said  that  he  had  no  prejudice  against  the  steam- 


108      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

boats  or  steamboatmen,  nor  against  St.  Louis.  Their 
feelings  were  only  natural.  "But,"  he  continued,  "there 
is  a  travel  from  east  to  west  whose  demands  are  not  less 
than  that  of  those  of  the  river.  It  is  growing  larger 
and  larger,  building  up  new  countries  with  a  rapidity 
never  before  seen  in  the  history  of  the  world.  This  cur- 
rent of  travel  has  its  rights  as  well  as  that  of  north  and 
south.  If  the  river  had  not  the  advantage  in  priority 
and  legislation,  we  could  enter  into  free  competition 
with  it  and  we  could  surpass  it." 

It  was  at  this  point  that  he  dilated  upon  the  growing 
West,  picturing  it  in  glowing  colors,  as  recalled  by 
Blodgett. 

"This  particular  railroad  line,"  he  went  on,  "has  a 
great  importance  and  the  statement  of  its  business  dur- 
ing a  little  less  than  a  year  shows  this  importance.  It  is 
in  evidence  that  from  September  8th,  1856,  to  August 
8th,  1857,  12,586  freight  cars  and  74,179  passengers 
passed  over  this  bridge.  Navigation  was  closed  four 
days  short  of  four  months  last  year,  and  during  this 
time  while  the  river  was  of  no  use  this  road  and  bridge 
were  valuable.  There  is,  too,  a  considerable  portion  of 
time  when  floating  or  thin  ice  makes  the  river  useless, 
while  the  bridge  is  as  useful  as  ever.  This  shows  that 
this  bridge  must  be  treated  with  respect  in  this  court, 
and  is  not  to  be  kicked  about  with  contempt.  .  .  .  The 
proper  mode  for  all  parties  in  this  affair  is  to  'live  and 
let  live,'  and  then  we  will  find  a  cessation  of  this  trouble 
about  the  bridge. 

"What  mood  were  the  steamboat  men  in  when  this 
bridge  was  burned?  Why,  there  was  a  shouting  and 
ringing  of  bells  and  whistling  on  all  the  boats  as  it  fell. 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     109 

It  was  a  jubilee,  a  greater  celebration  than  follows  an 
exciting  election." 

He  then  referred  rather  sarcastically  to  the  decrease 
in  the  number  of  accidents  occurring. 

"From  April  19th,  1856,  to  May  6th— seventeen 
days — there  were  twenty  accidents,  and  all  the  time 
since  then  there  have  been  but  twenty  hits,  including 
seven  accidents,  so  that  the  dangers  of  this  place  are 
tapering  off  and  as  the  boatmen  get  cool,  the  accidents 
get  less.  We  may  soon  expect  if  this  ratio  is  kept  up 
that  there  will  be  no  accidents  at  all." 

Lincoln  then  discussed  the  alleged  difference  between 
a  "float"  and  a  "boat,"  and  the  angular  position  of  the 
piers,  but  said  that  he  would  not  take  up  the  question, 
"What  is  a  material  obstruction?"  as  he  was  willing 
to  trust  Judge  McLean's  instructions  on  that  technical 
point. 

"What  is  reasonable  skill  and  care?"  was  his  next 
point.  "This  is  a  thing  of  which  the  jury  are  to  judge. 
I  differ  from  the  other  side  when  it  says  that  they  are 
bound  to  exercise  no  more  care  than  was  taken  before 
the  building  of  the  bridge.  If  we  are  allowed  by  the 
Legislature  to  build  the  bridge  which  will  require 
them  to  do  more  than  before  when  a  pilot  comes  along, 
it  is  unreasonable  for  him  to  dash  on  heedless  of  this 
structure  which  has  been  legally  put  there.  The  Afton 
came  there  on  the  5th,  and  lay  at  Rock  Island  until 
next  morning.  When  a  boat  lies  up  the  pilot  has  a  holi- 
day, and  would  not  any  of  these  jurors  have  then  gone 
around  the  bridge  and  gotten  acquainted  with  the 
place?  Pilot  Parker  has  shown  here  that  he  does  not 
understand  the  draw.  I  heard  him  say  that  the  fall  from 


110      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

the  head  to  the  foot  of  the  pier  was  four  feet ;  he  needs 
information.  He  could  have  gone  there  that  day  and 
seen  there  was  no  such  fall.  He  should  have  discarded 
passion  and  the  chances  are  that  he  would  have  had  no 
disaster  at  all.  He  was  bound  to  make  himself  ac- 
quainted with  the  case. 

"McCammon  says  that  the  current  and  the  swell 
coming  from  the  long  pier  drove  her  against  the  long 
pier.  In  other  words,  drove  her  toward  the  very  pier 
from  which  the  current  came.  It  is  an  absurdity,  an  im- 
possibility. The  only  recollection  I  can  find  for  this 
contradiction  is  in  a  current  which  White  says  strikes 
out  from  the  long  pier  and  then  like  a  ram's  horn  turns 
back,  and  this  might  have  acted  somehow  in  this  man- 
ner." 

He  then  went  into  a  lengthy  discussion  of  the  cur- 
rents of  the  stream,  their  velocity,  the  average  speed 
of  the  destroyed  boat,  the  absence  of  cross  currents. 

"Next  I  shall  show,"  he  said,  "that  she  struck  first 
the  short  pier,  then  the  long  pier,  then  the  short  one 
again,  and  there  she  stopped." 

The  testimony  of  eighteen  witnesses  was  then  cited. 

"My  next  proposition  is  that  after  she  struck  the 
short  and  long  pier  and  before  she  got  back  to  the 
short  pier,  the  boat  got  right  with  her  bow  up." 

At  this  point  court  adjourned  until  the  following 
day. 

On  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  trial,  it  was  observed 
that  Abraham  Lincoln  had  a  model  of  a  boat  in  the 
court  room.  After  he  had  resumed  his  argument  it  was 
seen  just  why  he  had  that  model,  when  he  used  it  in 
explaining  to  the  jury  that  the  "splash  door"  on  such 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     111 

a  boat  was  just  behind  the  wheel.  This  was  necessary 
for  their  understanding  of  his  contentions. 

"The  boat  struck,"  he  said,  "on  the  lower  shoulder 
of  the  short  pier  as  she  swung  around  in  the  splash  door, 
then  as  she  went  on  around  she  struck  the  point  or  end 
of  the  pier  where  she  rested. 

"Her  engineers  say,"  he  went  on,  "that  the  starboard 
wheel  was  then  rushing  around  rapidly.  Then  the  boat 
must  have  struck  the  upper  point  of  the  pier  so  far 
back  as  not  to  disturb  the  wheel.  It  is  forty  feet  from 
the  stern  of  the  Aft  on  to  the  splash  door,  and  thus  it 
appears  that  she  had  but  forty  feet  to  go  to  clear  the 
pier.  How  was  it  that  the  Afton,  with  all  her  power, 
flanked  over  from  the  channel  to  the  short  pier  without 
moving  one  foot  ahead?  Suppose  she  was  in  the  middle 
of  the  draw,  her  wheel  would  have  been  thirty-one  feet 
from  the  short  pier.  The  reason  she  went  over  thus  is 
her  starboard  wheel  was  not  working.  I  shall  try  to 
establish  the  fact  that  the  wheel  was  not  running  and 
that  after  she  struck  she  went  ahead  strong  on  this  same 
wheel.  Upon  the  last  point  the  witnesses  agree  that 
the  starboard  wheel  was  running  after  she  struck,  and 
no  witnesses  say  that  it  was  running  while  she  was  out 
in  the  draw  flanking  over." 

He  then  cited  various  witnesses  proving  that  the  star- 
board wheel  was  not  working  while  the  Afton  was  out 
in  the  stream,  and  that  this  was  not  unknown  to  the 
captain  of  the  craft. 

"The  fact  is  undisputed,"  he  stated,  "that  she  did 
not  move  one  inch  ahead  while  she  was  moving  this 
thirty-one  feet  sideways.  There  is  evidence  proving 
that  the  current  there  is  only  five  miles  an  hour,  and  the 


112      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

only  explanation  is  that  her  power  was  not  all  used — 
that  only  one  wheel  was  working.  The  pilot  says  he 
ordered  the  engineers  to  back  her  up.  The  engineers 
differ  from  him  and  said  they  kept  one  going  ahead. 
The  bow  was  so  swung  that  the  current  pressed  it  over ; 
the  pilot  pressed  the  stern  over  with  the  rudder,  though 
not  so  fast  but  that  the  bow  gained  on  it  and  only  one 
wheel  being  in  motion  the  boat  nearly  stood  still  so  far 
as  motion  up  and  down  is  concerned,  and  thus  she  was 
thrown  upon  the  pier. 

"The  Aft  on  came  into  the  draw,  after  she  had  just 
passed  the  Carson,  and  as  the  Carson  no  doubt  kept 
the  true  course,  the  Afton  going  around  her  got  out  of 
the  proper  way,  got  across  the  current  into  the  eddy 
which  is  west  of  a  straight  line  drawn  from  the  long 
pier,  was  compelled  to  resort  to  these  changes  of  wheels 
"which  she  did  not  do  with  sufficient  adroitness  to  save 
her. 

"Was  it  not  her  own  fault  that  she  entered  wrong, 
so  far  wrong  that  she  never* got  right?  Is  the  defense 
to  blame  for  that?" 

Then  he  indulged  in  a  little  irony.  "For  several 
days,"  he  said,  "we  were  entertained  with  depositions 
about  boats  'smelling  a  bar.'  Why  did  the  Afton  then, 
after  she  had  come  up  smelling  so  close  to  the  long 
pier,  sheer  off  so  strangely?  When  she  got  to  the  center 
of  the  very  nose  she  was  smelling,  she  seemed  suddenly 
to  have  lost  her  sense  of  smell  and  to  have  flanked  over 
to  the  short  pier. 

"The  plaintiffs  have  to  establish,"  he  said  in  closing, 
"that  the  bridge  is  a  material  obstruction  and  that  they 
have  managed  their  boat  with  reasonable  care  and  skill. 


THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     113 

As  to  last  point,  high  winds  have  nothing  to  do  with  it, 
for  it  was  not  a  windy  day.  They  must  show  due  skill 
and  care.  Difficulties  going  down  stream  will  not  do,  for 
they  were  going  up  stream.  Difficulties  with  barges  in 
tow  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  accident,  for  they  had 
no  barge." 

With  this  Lincoln  rested  his  case,  saying  that  he  had 
much  more  to  say  and  many  things  yet  to  suggest  to 
the  jury,  but  would  close  to  save  time. 

The  jury  failed  to  agree  and  was  discharged. 

Carrying  the  case  to  a  conclusion,  we  learn  that  it 
was  not  until  1862  that  it  was  finally  settled  by  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  permitting  the 
bridge  to  remain  and  settling  the  question  for  all  time. 

For  his  legal  services  in  this  highly  important  case, 
Lincoln  may  have  received  the  modest  sum  of  five  hun- 
dred dollars.  This  has  not  been  fully  established  and, 
we  believe,  the  evidence  has  never  before  appeared  in 
print.  It  is  furnished  by  J.  E.  Gorman,  now  president 
of  the  Rock  Island  system,  in  response  to  an  inquiry  by 
the  present  writer,  who  had  seen  the  statement  that 
Lincoln  acted  as  attorney  for  the  Rock  Island  Railroad, 
in  other  cases,  implying  that  he  was  carried  on  the  rolls 
of  the  company,  in  the  same  capacity  as  for  the  Illinois 
Central,  and  Chicago  and  Alton  roads.  This  appears 
to  be  an  error,  for  with  reference  to  these  statements 
Mr.  Gorman  writes : 

"We  have  made  a  diligent  search  through  such  rec- 
ords as  are  now  available  covering  the  period  between 
1850  and  1860.  Mr.  Lincoln's  name  does  not  appear  on 
our  payrolls  for  that  period.  However,  we  do  find  in  the 


114      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

records  of  the  Chicago  and  Rock  Island  Railroad,  the 
name  of  the  corporate  company  at  that  time,  covering 
the  line  as  it  was  then  operated  between  Chicago  and 
Rock  Island,  a  voucher  showing  that  on  September 
30th,  1857,  Abraham  Lincoln  was  paid  for  legal  serv- 
ices the  sum  of  $500  for  the  account  of  the  Mississippi 
River  Bridge  Company. 

"We  can  find  no  other  record  of  any  other  payments 
to  the  Bridge  Company,  account  legal  expenses  fur- 
nished by  Mr.  Lincoln,  and  it  seems  evident  that  his  con- 
nection with  this  company  at  that  time  was  confined  to 
the  period  during  which  the  Rock  Island  Bridge  case 
was  being  tried,  and  from  the  fact  that  his  name  does 
not  appear  on  our  payrolls,  it  can  also  be  assumed  that 
he  was  employed  on  a  fee  basis." 

In  a  still  later  letter,  however,  dated  February  16, 
1927,  Mr.  Gorman  writes: 

"Your  letter  of  January  27th,  seeking  to  obtain  copy 
of  voucher  amounting  to  five  hundred  dollars  paid 
Abraham  Lincoln  on  September  30th,  1857,  in  connec- 
tion with  legal  services  rendered  the  Rock  Island  Bridge 
Company  at  the  time  this  bridge  was  partially  de- 
stroyed, is  received. 

"We  have,  on  a  number  of  occasions,  endeavored  to 
locate  the  voucher  referred  to  in  my  letter  of  May  16th, 
1922,  but  without  success.  One  of  these  occasions  was  in 
connection  with  information  desired  by  former  Senator, 
Albert  J.  Beveridge  ...  to  whom  our  Valuation  En- 
gineer wrote  as  follows : 

"  'I  have  personally  checked  the  records  of  the  Chi- 
cago and  Rock  Island,  and  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri 
Railroad,  for  some  record  of  payment  made  Mr.  Lin- 
coln; I  have  also  discussed  this  feature  with  Curator 


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THE  ROCK  ISLAND  BRIDGE  CASE     115 

Harlan,  of  the  Historical  Society  of  Iowa,  but  without 
avail.  .  .  . 

"  'My  thought,  after  a  great  deal  of  deliberation,  is 
that  the  law  firm  headed  by  Norman  B.  Judd  actually 
managed  the  case,  and  the  intimate  (sic)  of  friendship 
which  existed  between  Abraham  Lincoln  and  Mr.  Judd 
secured  the  services  of  the  former  in  the  case,  and  that 
Mr.  Judd  simply  handed  Mr.  Lincoln  a  personal  check, 
or,  probably,  cash,  in  accordance  with  the  price  which 
the  two  gentlemen  agreed  between  themselves  was 
proper.' 

"At  the  time  the  foregoing  was  given  Senator  Beve- 
ridge,  Mr.  Nevins  had  considered  the  five  hundred  dol- 
lar entry — mentioned  in  our  previous  letter  to  you — 
and  had  decided  that  this  was  not  in  remuneration  for 
services  rendered  in  the  bridge  case,  but  for  legal  serv- 
ices rendered  in  connection  with  other  matters." 

In  a  lengthy  argument  filed  within  recent  years  by 
prominent  attorneys,  in  a  case  in  chancery,  in  Illinois, 
a  significant  reference  is  made  to  the  important  bearing 
which  the  Rock  Island  Bridge  case  exercised  upon  later 
legislation.  The  report  says  in  part: 

"The  same  bridge  was  the  subject  of  the  unsuccess- 
ful suit  to  abate,  brought  in  the  Iowa  District  in  1858, 
and  in  which  the  abatement  order  by  the  United  States 
District  Court  of  Iowa  was  reversed,  and  the  bill  dis- 
missed by  the  United  States  Supreme  Court.  The  case 
is  valuable  as  marking  the  evolution  of  the  Lincoln  doc- 
trine that  a  man  has  as  good  right  to  go  across  a  river 
as  another  has  to  go  up  or  down  the  river,  that  the  two 
rights  are  mutual,  that  the  existence  of  a  bridge  which 
does  not  prevent  or  unreasonably  obstruct  navigation 


116      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

is  not  inconsistent  with  the  navigable  character  of  the 
stream.  Mr.  Lincoln  exerted  a  powerful  influence  upon 
the  development  of  the  transportation  system  of  the 
continent.  He  is  the  author  of  the  American  doctrine  of 
bridges." 


CHAPTER  XII 

LINCOLN  AS  OPPOSING  COUNSEL  TO 
RAILROADS 

Because  Abraham  Lincoln  was  often  found  on  the 
side  of  the  railroad  corporations  in  their  early  litiga- 
tion in  the  state  of  Illinois,  it  does  not  necessarily  fol- 
low that  he  was  averse  to  appearing  against  them  be- 
fore the  judicial  tribunals. 

On  the  contrary,  there  is  evidence  that  he  appeared 
quite  frequently  on  the  opposite  side,  carrying  four 
cases  as  high  as  the  State  Supreme  Court  in  the  firm 
name  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon,  three  of  which  he  lost. 

Beside  these,  there  were  evidently  a  number  which  he 
pleaded  in  various  Circuit  Courts,  but  the  data  con- 
cerning them  cannot  be  found  to-day  among  the  court 
records,  on  account  of  the  general  pilfering  which  has 
been  done  in  the  early  files  of  those  documents  bearing 
the  name  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  This  has  been  brought 
to  the  writer's  attention  quite  forcefully  several  times 
in  investigations  made  concerning  the  railroad  litiga- 
tion which  Lincoln  handled  before  the  lower  courts. 
There  are  two  cases,  however,  of  which  we  have  knowl- 
edge, which  were  not  appealed  to  the  higher  body. 

The  first  was  a  suit  brought  by  a  certain  John  B. 
Watson  against  what  was  then  known  as  the  Sangamon 
and  Morgan  Railroad  Company,  now  a  part  of  the  Wa- 

117 


118      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

bash  system.  The  case  was  instituted,  July  25,  1849, 
and  Watson  was  represented  by  the  firms  of  Lincoln 
and  Herndon,  and  Stuart  and  Edwards. 

Watson  had  contracted  to  deliver  to  the  railroad 
company,  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  cross-ties. 
The  ties  were  all  delivered,  but  only  a  small  portion  of 
the  money  due  him  had  been  paid  at  this  time.  The 
itemized  bill  in  the  complaint  showed  a  balance  yet 
due  of  $93,4*50,  which  included  interest. 

Unfortunately  the  final  outcome  of  the  trial  cannot 
be  ascertained.  The  court  records  for  Sangamon 
County,  where  the  case  was  tried,  have  disappeared, 
and  no  other  contemporary  records  are  in  existence. 

The  other  case  is  of  an  entirely  different  nature. 
Jesse  W.  Weik,  the  Lincoln  authority,  has  furnished 
the  writer  with  an  exact  copy  of  the  declaration  writ- 
ten by  Lincoln  in  the  first  personal  injury  damage  suit 
he  brought  against  our  common  carrier.  This  was  in 
1854  and,  as  Mr.  Weik  says,  "very  soon  after  railroads 
began  to  traverse  the  prairies  of  Illinois,  and  damage 
suits  as  the  result  of  amputated  limbs  were  more  or  less 
of  a  novelty." 

"The  declaration,"  continues  Mr.  Weik,  "though 
signed  Lincoln  and  Herndon,  was  written  by  Lincoln, 
and  when  contrasted  with  the  phraseology  of  a  bill  of 
complaint  as  lawyers  now  word  such  things,  is  about 
as  crude  and  primitive  as  the  machinery  and  appliances 
of  that  early  period  appear,  when  compared  with  the 
ponderous  and  elaborate  equipment  now  in  use  by  the 
railroads  of  this  day." 

A  verbatim  copy  of  the  declaration,  as  to  punctuat- 
ing, spelling  and  underscoring,  follows: 


OPPOSING  COUNSEL  TO  RAILROADS     119 

In  the  Circuit  Court  of  Sangamon  County 
March  term  a.  d.  1854. 

State  of  Illinois     Ln 
Sangamon  County] 

Jasper  Harris,  plaintiff,  complains  of  The  Great 
Western  Railroad  Company,  defendant,  being  in  cus- 
tody etc.  of  a  plea  of  trespass  on  the  case —  For  that 
whereas  heretofore  towit,  on  the  day  of  Novem- 
ber, in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  fifty  three  at  the  county  of  Scott,  towit,  at 
the  county  aforesaid,  the  said  Railroad  Company  were 
possessed  of  a  certain  Railroad  and  were  then  and  there 
possessed  of  and  using  thereon  certain  Locomotive- 
steam-engines,  tanks,  cars  etc.  and  then  and  there  had 
in  their  employment,  as  servant  and  engineer,  manag- 
ing and  running  one  of  their  Locomotive  steam  engines 
with  a  tank  and  with  and  without  cars  attached,  on 

their  said  Railroad,  one  Edgar;  and  also  said 

Railroad  Company,  then  and  there,  had  in  their  em- 
ployment, as  servant  and  conductor,  in  charge  of  the 
same  Locomotive-steam-engine,  tank  and  cars  man- 
aged and  run  by  said  Edgar  as  engineer  as  aforesaid, 
one  George  Armstrong;  and  also  said  Railroad  Com- 
pany, then  and  there,  had  in  their  employment,  as 
servant  and  brakeman,  on  and  about  the  Locomotive- 
steam-engine,  tank  and  cars,  last  aforesaid,  the  afore- 
said plaintiff —  And  the  plaintiff  avers  that  it  was,  then 
and  there,  the  duty  of  both  said  engineer  and  brake- 
man,  severally,  to  obey  the  proper  orders  of  said  con- 
ductor, and  then  and  there,  was  the  duty  of  said 
Railroad  Company  by  their  engineer,  whenever  said 
Locomotive-steam-engine  and  whatever  might  be 
thereto  attached,  should  be  at  rest,  to  not  put  the  same 
in  motion  without  the  order  of  said  conductor,  nor 
without  giving  a  known  signal  of  the  intention  to  do 
so —  Yet  the  said  Railroad  Company,  on  the  day  and 


120      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

year  aforesaid  and  at  the  county  aforesaid,  by  their 
said  engineer  being  then  and  there  in  their  employment 
as  aforesaid  and  in  the  prosecution  of  their  lawful  busi- 
ness aforesaid;  and  the  said  Locomotive-steam-engine, 
then  and  there  being  at  rest,  with  said  tank  thereto  at- 
tached, (and  said  plaintiff  then  and  there  being  in  the 
attempt  to  go  aboard  of  said  tank  in  obedience  to  the 
proper  order  of  said  conductor  and  without  any  fault 
on  his  part)  they,  the  said  Railroad  Company,  by  their 
said  engineer,  and  without  the  order  of  said  conductor, 
and  without  the  giving  of  the  signal  aforesaid,  put  said 
engine  and  tank  in  motion,  whereby  said  plaintiff  was 
thrown  down  and  his  right  foot,  ancle,  leg  and  thigh 
greatly  torn,  crushed  and  broken ;  so  that  thereby  said 
plaintiff  became  and  was  sick,  lame  and  disordered,  and 
has  so  remained  for  a  long  space  of  time,  towit  for  the 
period  of  four  months ;  and  also  by  means  of  which  said 
wrong  of  said  Railroad  Company,  amputation  of  Ins 
said  right  limb  above  the  knee  became  and  was  neces- 
sary, and  has  actually  been  performed,  and  said  limb 
has  been  wholly  lost  to  said  plaintiff ;  and  other  wrongs 
the  said  Railroad  Company  then  and  there  did  to  the 
said  plaintiff,  and  to  his  damage  of  ten  thousand  dollars 
and  therefore  he  brings  his  suit  etc. 

Lincoln  &  Herndon,  p.  q. 

Jasper  Harris  Trespass  on  the  case 

vs 
The  Great  Western  Damage  $10,000. 

Railroad  Company 

The  Clerk  will  issue  a  Summons  in  the  above  entitled 
case —  And  also  a  Subpoena  for  George  Armstrong — 

Lincoln  &  Herndon  p.  q. 

The  outcome  of  this  case  also  is  in  doubt,  and  we 
have  no  means  of  knowing  whether  Harris  got  his  ten 


OPPOSING  COUNSEL  TO  RAILROADS     121 

thousand  dollars  or  not.  The  Great  Western  Railroad 
mentioned  is  now  a  part  of  the  Wabash. 

An  interesting  exhibition  of  Abraham  Lincoln's  ab- 
solute honesty  and  fairness  as  a  lawyer  is  told  in  a 
story  given  of  an  early  case  which  he  was  handling 
against  a  railroad  corporation,  although  details  as  to 
the  case  itself  are  lacking.  The  incident  is  mentioned  by 
at  least  four  different  authorities,  and  we  append  it  as 
related  by  Lamon,  who  was  probably  present. 

"The  case  was  concluded  in  his  (Lincoln's)  favor," 
says  Lamon,  "except  as  to  the  pronouncement  of  judg- 
ment. Before  this  was  done,  he  rose  and  stated  that  his 
opponents  had  not  proved  all  that  was  justly  due  to 
them  in  offset,  and  proceeded  to  state  briefly  that 
justice  required  that  an  allowance  should  be  made 
against  his  client  for  a  certain  amount.  The  court  at 
once  acquiesced  in  his  statement,  and  immediately  pro- 
ceeded to  pronounce  judgment  in  accordance  there- 
with." 

Gustave  Koerner  in  his  "Memoirs"  refers  to  Lincoln 
and  himself  as  "being  engaged  together  in  an  important 
case  in  1854*  for  the  city  of  St.  Louis  against  the  Ohio 
and  Mississippi  Railroad  Company,  or  rather  against 
the  directors  of  that  company,"  but  gives  no  details. 

The  first  case  which  Lincoln  handled  against  any 
railroad  corporation  before  the  Illinois  Supreme  Court, 
was  heard  at  the  December,  1855,  term  of  the  court  in 
session  at  Springfield.  Associated  with  him  was  Grant 
Goodrich,  of  Chicago,  a  prominent  attorney  with  whom 
he  had  declined  a  partnership,  shortly  after  his  return 
to  civil  life  from  his  term  in  Congress. 

Arrayed  against  them  was  the  redoubtable  James  F. 


122      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Joy,  who  was  representing  the  Chicago,  Burlington  and 
Quincy  Railroad  in  an  application  for  a  mandamus.  The 
road  as  constituted  at  that  time  was  but  a  small  part 
of  the  large  system  of  similar  name  in  existence  to-day. 
It  ran  from  East  Burlington  to  Turner  Junction  (West 
Chicago),  with  trackage  rights  into  Chicago  over  the 
Galena  and  Chicago  Union  Railroad,  now  a  part  of 
the  Chicago  and  Northwestern. 

The  Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy  Railroad  Com- 
pany had  petitioned  Judge  Wilson  of  the  Thirteenth 
Judicial  District,  to  appoint  commissioners  to  fix  the 
compensation  which  should  be  paid  for  taking  over 
certain  lands  and  lots  for  use  of  the  railroad,  for  con- 
structing and  maintaining  "turn-outs,  depots,  engine 
houses,  shops  and  turntables." 

The  Judge  had  denied  this  petition,  but  agreed  that 
if  in  the  opinion  of  the  Supreme  Court  commissioners 
should  be  appointed,  he  would  waive  the  necessity  of 
an  alternate  mandamus.  The  higher  tribunal  handed 
down  a  decision  favoring  the  corporation,  stating  that 
"on  an  application  to  a  Judge  for  the  appointment  of 
commissioners  to  condemn  lands,  he  is  compelled  to  act, 
if  such  a  case  is  made  as  the  statute  directs." 

The  next  two  cases  listed  were  heard  just  two  years 
later,  the  first  being  docketed:  "Charles  Sprague, 
Plaintiff  in  Error,  v.  the  Illinois  River  Railroad  Com- 
pany, et  al.j  Defendants  in  Error." 

Sprague  had  requested  a  perpetual  injunction  re- 
straining the  Cass  County  Court  from  issuing  bonds 
to  the  amount  of  $50,000  authorized  at  a  general  elec- 
tion held  in  1853.  His  argument  was  based  on  the 


OPPOSING  COUNSEL  TO  RAILROADS     123 

grounds  that  several  amendatory  acts  since  passed  by 
the  General  Assembly  had  materially  changed  the 
original  proposition,  and  absolved  the  County  from 
their  subscription  to  the  proposed  road. 

The  plaintiff  was  represented  by  the  firm  of  Lincoln 
and  Herndon,  and  H.  E.  Dummer,  while  the  road's  at- 
torneys were  Stephen  T.  Logan,  Lincoln's  ex-law 
partner,  and  D.  A.  Smith.  While  the  case  was  lost,  it 
should  be  remembered  that  the  leading  oposing  attorney 
was  one  of  the  best  lawyers  in  the  state  in  his  day.  In- 
deed, one  of  their  contemporaries  once  heard  Lincoln 
say  that  it  was  his  highest  ambition  to  become  as  good 
a  lawyer  as  Judge  Logan. 

It  was  at  this  session  of  the  Court  that  Lincoln  ap- 
peared against  his  old  client  of  long  standing,  the 
Chicago  and  Alton  road,  in  the  case  of  "The  St.  Louis, 
Alton  and  Chicago  Railroad  Company,  Appellant,  v. 
Joseph  A.  Dalby,  Appellee." 

This  was  a  suit  originally  brought  by  a  passenger 
for  personal  damages  received  at  the  hands  of  the  rail- 
road's employees,  before  Judge  Davis  and  a  jury  in 
Logan  County.  It  was  what  is  termed  an  action  of 
trespass  against  the  railroad  and  a  conductor  by  the 
name  of  True  Woodbury,  although  the  latter  was  not 
served  with  a  process.  The  jury  had  returned  a  verdict 
against  the  corporation,  assessing  the  damages  at  one 
thousand  dollars.  Half  of  this  fine  Dalby  remitted, 
which  had  caused  the  Court  to  overrule  a  motion  of  the 
road  for  a  new  trial.  It  had  then  been  carried  to  the 
Supreme  Court  by  the  firm  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon, 
the  opposing  counsel  being  Stuart  and  Edwards.  The 


124      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

higher  tribunal  affirmed  the  judgment  of  the  lower 
court. 

The  last  case  heard  before  the  Supreme  Court  had 
to  do  with  the  old  subject  of  stock  subscriptions,  al- 
though in  this  instance  Abraham  Lincoln  appeared  in 
a  different  role.  It  was  what  is  known  as  a  "suit  in  as- 
sumpsit," originally  brought  in  the  Circuit  Court  of 
Shelby  County,  by  the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton  Rail- 
road Company  against  one  Daniel  Earp,  to  recover 
the  sum  of  $500  subscribed  by  him  for  ten  shares  of 
the  capital  stock  of  the  company.  The  case  going 
against  the  corporation,  it  was  carried  to  the  Supreme 
Court  and  heard  before  the  January,  1859,  term  of 
the  court  at  Springfield. 

The  Terre  Haute  and  Alton  Railroad,  to  run  be- 
tween Terre  Haute,  Indiana,  and  Alton,  Illinois,  was 
incorporated  in  both  states  in  1851,  and  opened  for 
business  March  1,  1856.  Later  that  same  year  a  consoli- 
dation was  effected  with  the  Belleville  and  Illinoistown 
Railroad  Company,  running  from  Belleville  to  what  was 
then  called  Illinoistown,  but  is  now  known  as  East 
St.  Louis,  with  an  extension  from  the  latter  point  to 
East  Alton,  the  new  organization  being  known  as  the 
Terre  Haute,  Alton  and  St.  Louis  Railroad  Company. 

Joseph  Gillespie,  S.  W.  Moulton  and  Levi  Davis 
were  the  railroad  attorneys,  while  the  firm  of  Lincoln 
and  Herndon  represented  Earp. 

Earp's  attorney  sought  to  avoid  payment  on  the 
ground  that  the  "new  and  deflected  road"  had  thereby 
made  "the  real  terminus  ...  to  be  at  said  Illinois- 
town,  and  not  at  Alton  aforesaid,  and  that  the  same 


OPPOSING  COUNSEL  TO  RAILROADS     125 

was  done  without  the  consent  of  the  defendant."  De- 
spite this  argument,  however,  the  case  went  against 
Lincoln,  the  Supreme  Court  reversing  the  judgment 
of  the  lower  tribunal. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

LINCOLN'S  OFFER  FROM  THE  NEW  YORK 
CENTRAL 

One  of  the  most  interesting  of  all  the  stories  cluster- 
ing around  Lincoln's  connection  with  the  railroads  has 
to  do  with  the  offer  which  is  said  to  have  been  made 
to  him  by  the  New  York  Central  Railroad,  to  serve  as 
its  General  Counsel.  Little  attention  has  been  paid  to 
this  in  existing  biographies,  and  some  writers  treat  it 
as  only  a  tradition,  but  it  comes  as  well  authenticated 
as  many  other  things  connected  with  his  legal  career. 

It  arouses  in  the  reader  of  to-day  a  vein  of  alluring 
speculation.  Lincoln,  the  rising  Western  attorney — so 
the  story  goes — was  offered  a  tempting  plum — a  posi- 
tion high  in  the  railway  and  legal  world.  If  he  had  ac- 
cepted it,  would  we  ever  have  had  Lincoln  the  Presi- 
dent? It  was  the  crossroads  of  his  career. 

In  the  spring  of  1860  he  had  come  East  by  invitation 
to  deliver  a  political  address  at  the  Cooper  Institute, 
in  New  York.  It  was  the  first  opportunity  on  the  part 
of  the  East  to  hear  this  remarkable  man  from  Illinois. 
One  of  his  auditors  on  that  memorable  evening  was 
Erastus  Corning,  a  prominent  financier  who  was  presi- 
dent of  the  New  York  Central.  At  that  time,  the  rail- 
road extended  from  Buffalo,  on  the  west,  to  Albany, 
where  it  connected  with  the  Hudson  River  Railroad 
running  down  to  the  metropolis.  Both  roads  are  now  a 
part  of  the  Central  system. 

126 


OFFER  FROM  NEW  YORK  CENTRAL     127 

Mr.  Corning,  like  others,  was  deeply  impressed  by 
the  speaker  of  the  evening.  Lincoln,  as  we  know,  had 
faced  a  highly  critical  audience  and  had  won  it  over. 
The  railroad  magnate  had  heard  of  him  as  a  success- 
ful attorney  for  the  Illinois  Central  and  other  Western 
roads,  but  had  never  met  him.  As  he  listened  Corning 
was  seized  with  an  inspiration.  He  would  secure  this 
Westerner  for  his  own  railway. 

As  Corning  cast  about  in  his  mind  for  ways  and 
means  he  recalled  that  his  own  cousin,  James  B.  Mer- 
win,  was  a  friend  of  Lincoln's.  They  had  stumped  the 
state  of  Illinois  together  politically  and  had  been  on 
intimate  terms  for  the  past  six  years. 

Lincoln  was  stopping  at  the  Astor  House,  then  one 
of  the  city's  leading  hostelries,  situated  on  lower  Broad- 
way near  City  Hall  Park.  Corning  went  down  there 
early  the  next  morning  following  the  Cooper  Institute 
speech.  He  met  Merwin  in  the  lobby,  and  immediately 
came  to  the  point  of  his  errand. 

"I  want  to  see  Mr.  Lincoln  on  business,"  he  said. 
"Can  I  get  to  him?" 

"He's  the  easiest  man  in  the  world  to  see,"  Merwin 
replied,  as  he  led  the  way  to  his  friend. 

After  the  introduction  the  railroad  president  opened 
the  subject  which  lay  on  his  mind. 

"Mr.  Lincoln,"  he  said,  "I  understand  that  in  Illinois 
you  win  all  your  lawsuits." 

Lincoln  laughed  softly. 

"Oh,  no,  Mr.  Corning,  that  is  not  true,"  he  replied, 
"but  I  do  make  it  a  rule  to  refuse  unless  I  am  convinced 
the  litigant's  cause  is  just." 

"Would  you  entertain  an  offer  from  the  New  York 


128      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Central  Railroad,  Mr.  Lincoln,"  continued  Corning 
abruptly,  "to  become  its  General  Counsel  at  a  salary 
of  $10,000  a  year?" 

This  proposition  was  as  amazing  as  it  was  sudden. 
Both  his  hearers  were  struck  dumb  with  surprise.  Mer- 
win  stared  first  at  Corning,  then  at  Lincoln,  and  the 
latter  lapsed  into  a  deep  study. 

"Why,  Mr.  Corning,"  he  said  at  last,  "what  could 
I  do  with  $10,000  a  year?  It  would  ruin  my  family 
to  have  that  much  income.  I  don't  believe  that  I  had 
better  consider  it." 

But  Corning  did  not  want  a  hasty  decision.  He  de- 
sired Lincoln  to  think  over  the  proposition  calmly  and 
from  all  points. 

"You  don't  have  to  decide  till  you  get  a  letter  from 
me,"  he  said  as  he  took  his  departure.  "I'm  going  to 
get  our  directors  together  and  advise  them  to  engage 
you  at  $10,000  per  year." 

Lincoln  seemed  dazed  after  his  visitor  left,  and 
looked  inquiringly  at  Merwin. 

"Of  course  you'll  accept?"  the  latter  suggested. 

But  the  Sangamon  attorney  slowly  shook  his  head. 

"No,  Merwin,  I  don't  think  I  shall,"  he  replied. 

"Why,  man  alive,  of  course  you'll  accept!"  Merwin 
persisted.  "Why  debate  about  it?" 

But  Lincoln  continued  to  shake  his  head,  quietly 
and  thoughtfully.  His  thoughts  seemed  to  be  concerned 
not  so  much  with  the  effect  an  acceptance  might  have 
on  his  political  prospects,  but  rather  as  to  how  it  would 
affect  himself  and  his  family.  Would  it  be  the  right 
thing  to  do? 

Merwin  accompanied  Lincoln  to  New  England  on  his 


Courtesy,   New   York  Central  RaUrcad 

ERASTUS    CORNING 

After  hearing  Lincoln  speak  in  New  York,  Mr.  Corning,  who 
was  then  president  of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad,  sought  an 
interview  with  the  Western  lawyer,  at  the  old  Astor  House,  and 
there  made  him  a  verbal  offer  of  the  General  Counselship  of  his 
road.  This  tempting  offer  Lincoln  finally  declined,  thereby  chang- 
ing the  tenor  of  his  whole  later  career. 


OFFER  FROM  NEW  YORK  CENTRAL     129 

speech-making  tour,  which  followed  the  opening  gun 
in  New  York;  for  as  a  native  of  Connecticut  and  ac- 
quainted with  the  leading  Republicans,  Merwin  proved 
a  valuable  companion.  On  this  itinerary  the  subject  of 
Coming's  proposition  was  often  discussed,  but  no  de- 
cision was  reached.  When  Lincoln  returned  home,  Mer- 
win accompanied  him  as  far  west  as  Chicago.  Several 
days  later  Merwin  journeyed  to  Springfield  to  learn  if 
his  friend  had  settled  the  matter. 

He  reached  Lincoln's  law  office  about  nine  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  only  to  find  that  the  senior  partner  had 
not  yet  arrived.  He  waited  about  half  an  hour  until 
Lincoln  walked  in. 

"Of  all  the  God-forsaken  looking  men  I  had  ever 
seen,"  Merwin  related  in  after  years,  "he  was  the  worst. 
He  looked  as  if  he  had  been  up  all  night,  and  seemed 
fearfully  depressed." 

"Lincoln,"  his  caller  said  when  they  were  alone, 
"your  good  fortune  seems  to  have  a  queer  effect  on  you. 
Of  course  you'll  accept  Coming's  offer?" 

"No,  Merwin,  I  have  decided  to  decline  it,"  replied 
Lincoln.  "I've  got  his  letter  offering  the  place  and  am 
going  to  answer  it  to-day,  in  the  negative." 

Merwin  saw  that  Lincoln  had  made  up  his  mind,  so 
refrained  from  arguing  with  him — though  feeling  that 
he  was  making  a  serious  mistake. 

Before  the  day  was  over  Merwin  learned  what  had 
made  Lincoln  late  at  his  office.  Arising  early  that  morn- 
ing, he  had  made  his  way  to  a  little  grove  just  out- 
side of  Springfield,  for  solitude  and  reflection.  To  this 
spot  he  was  wont  to  repair  when  he  had  a  knotty  prob- 
lem he  wanted  to  straighten  out  in  his  own  mind. 


180      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"There  he  had  literally  wrestled  with  the  question 
of  leaving  Springfield  and  becoming  a  New  York  cor- 
poration lawyer,"  as  Merwin  puts  it.  When  he  came 
out  of  the  woodland,  tired  and  haggard,  he  had  put 
behind  him  the  tempting  prize  and  the  life  of  ease  in  the 
East.  Illinois  was  still  to  be  his  battle-ground  and  home. 

This  is  the  story  substantially  as  Merwin  tells  it. 
The  present  writer  has  endeavored  to  throw  official 
light  upon  it  through  the  medium  of  the  New  York 
Central's  files.  From  the  Secretary  of  the  Company, 
who  has  kindly  co-operated  in  this  search — Mr.  E.  F. 
Stephenson — he  received  the  following  communication: 

"I  have  had  a  very  careful  search  made  of  the  minutes 
of  the  meetings  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  New 
York  Central  Railroad  Company  during  the  years  1859 
and  1860;  also  all  other  books  and  papers  in  the  vault 
at  Albany  that  might  contain  some  reference  to  the 
proposition  alleged  to  have  been  made  President  Lincoln 
by  Erastus  Corning,  President  of  the  New  York  Cen- 
tral Railroad  Company,  and  no  record  of  any  kind  was 
found  that  would  enable  me  to  verify  the  accuracy  of 
the  account  referred  to  by  you. 

"Mr.  Corning  was  a  Director  of  the  Hudson  River 
Railroad  during  the  years  1859,  I860,  and  1861 ;  Sam- 
uel Sloan  was  President  and  D.  T.  Vail,  Vice-President. 
I  have  personally  examined  the  minute  books  of  that 
company  in  this  office  and  they  contain  nothing  relative 
to  the  subject  about  which  you  enquire. 

"It  is  indeed  more  than  likely  that  the  appointment 
of  such  a  prominent  man  to  a  position  of  General  Coun- 
sel of  a  large  corporation  would  have  been  discussed  by 
some  of  the  Directors  and  officers  prior  to  the  presenta- 
tion of  any  sort  of  definite  proposition  and  would  only 


OFFER  FROM  NEW  YORK  CENTRAL     131 

have  been  submitted  to  the  Board  for  formal  action 
after  some  general  understanding  had  been  reached. 

"You  will  gather  from  the  above  that  the  oifer  could 
readily  have  been  made  and  declined  without  any  record 
having  been  entered." 

Mr.  Charles  T.  White,  on  the  staff  of  the  New  York 
Herald-Tribune,  and  an  intimate  of  Major  Merwin 
during  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  throws  additional 
light  on  the  published  narrative.  It  develops  that  White 
wrote  the  article  appearing  in  the  New  York  Sun,  at 
the  dictation  of  Merwin,  the  latter  being  enfeebled  by 


"I  am  satisfied  that  his  (Merwin's)  story  about 
Coming's  offer  was  substantially  true,"  writes  Mr. 
White.  "You  will  recall  that  during  the  War  Corn- 
ing headed  a  sort  of  Copperhead  movement  follow- 
ing the  Vallandingham  blow-up,  in  which  Lincoln 
wrote  him  a  historic  letter — one  of  the  greatest  that 
ever  came  from  his  pen.  .  .  .  Doubtless  Corning  took 
pains  that  no  record  was  left  (if  any  ever  was  made) 
connecting  him  with  Lincoln." 

Additional  confirmation  has  recently  come  to  the 
writer  from  a  grandson  of  Erastus  Corning,  Hon. 
Parker  Corning,  Member  of  Congress  from  Albany,  to 
the  effect  that  a  knowledge  of  this  offer  has  been  for 
many  years  in  the  possession  of  the  Corning  family,  he 
having  heard  of  it  from  his  father. 

And  so  we  pass  on  from  this  thought-provoking 
episode,  to  a  view  of  Lincoln  in  other  capacities  than 
that  of  railroad  attorney.  He  has  already,  as  we  know, 
entered  the  alluring  field  of  politics.  Henceforth,  the 
railroad  is  only  an  incidental  factor  in  his  life. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

THE  LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES 

Lest  the  reader  of  this  volume  get  an  improper  per- 
spective of  our  subject,  we  should  emphasize  two  im- 
portant points.  First,  as  an  attorney  Lincoln  handled 
a  wide  variety  of  cases  other  than  those  connected  with 
railroads.  He  was  a  general  practitioner  in  a  wider 
sense  of  the  term  than  is  true  of  the  legal  profession  to- 
day, where  specialization  has  entered  in  so  largely. 
Second,  the  realm  of  politics  was  absorbing  more  and 
more  of  his  attention. 

Back  in  the  days  when  Lincoln  was  a  raw  young  leg- 
islator in  Vandalia  he  first  met  another  fledgling  attor- 
ney and  law-maker.  His  name  was  Stephen  A.  Douglas. 
He  was  as  short  in  stature  as  Lincoln  was  long,  and  be- 
tween the  two,  who  were  later  to  become  bitter  political 
rivals,  there  were  other  marked  differences.  Douglas 
came  of  better  social  stock  than  Lincoln,  and  had  re- 
ceived more  advantages  in  the  way  of  an  education. 
Naturally  quick  and  brilliant  he  early  attracted  atten- 
tion, and  bade  fair  to  eclipse  the  Sangamon  attorney 
entirely.  By  the  time  the  latter  had  served  a  brief 
term  in  Congress  and  gone  back  to  private  life,  Doug- 
las had  become  senior  Senator  from  Illinois  and  a  na- 
tional figure.  His  friends  confidently  predicted  the 
highest  honors  in  the  gift  of  the  nation  for  the  "Little 
Giant." 

132 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES  133 

While  Douglas  was  in  the  Senate,  the  hue  and  cry 
over  the  admission  of  certain  states,  some  "slave"  and 
some  "free,"  was  agitating  the  country.  A  bill  was  in- 
troduced into  Congress  to  repeal  the  Missouri  Com- 
promise Act,  which  provided  that  all  states  above  a 
certain  latitude  should  be  non  slave-holding.  The  re- 
peal of  this  Act  would,  of  course,  permit  slaves  to  be 
introduced  into  the  North,  at  the  discretion  of  each 
state — particularly  those  both  north  and  south  now 
demanding  admission. 

Douglas  was  a  member  of  the  Senate  committee 
which  prepared  bills  for  the  admission  of  Kansas  and 
Nebraska,  and  openly  advocated  the  repeal  of  the 
Missouri  Compromise.  It  was  a  sop  thrown  to  the  South, 
for  political  purposes.  "Let  the  states  themselves  de- 
cide whether  they  shall  be  slave  or  free,"  he  said,  "that 
is  what  is  meant  by  States'  Rights." 

While  this  move  made  him  strong  in  the  South,  it 
put  him  on  the  defensive  in  his  own  state,  Illinois.  Back 
around  the  stoves  of  the  country  stores,  and  along  the 
rail  fences  of  the  farms,  excited  little  groups  talked  it 
over  and  decided  the  destinies  of  the  nation — as  was 
their  wont.  Everywhere  the  tall  lawyer  from  Sangamon 
County  went  he  was  held  up  by  neighbors  and  friends 
demanding  to  know  how  he  stood  upon  the  Missouri 
Compromise.  He  did  not  mince  matters  in  letting  them 
know. 

Meanwhile,  the  senior  Senator  was  not  finding  it 
smooth  sailing.  He  had  hurried  back  home  to  steer  his 
bark  into  quieter  waters,  but  it  was  no  easy  task.  When 
he  tried  to  speak  in  Chicago,  they  howled  him  down. 
But  Douglas  was  no  coward.  He  continued  on  a  tour 


134      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

down  through  the  state  and  won  a  respectful,  if  not 
always  sympathetic  hearing. 

In  October,  1854,  he  reached  Springfield,  the  state 
capital.  It  was  during  the  State  Fair,  and  farmers  for 
miles  around  had  driven  in,  their  interest  worked  up 
to  a  high  pitch  by  the  report  that  Abraham  Lincoln 
had  been  chosen  to  answer  him.  It  was  the  first  time 
these  two  great  rivals  had  locked  horns. 

"Why,"  argued  Douglas,  suave  and  smiling,  "should 
we  try  to  impose  our  wills  upon  the  people  of  Kansas 
and  Nebraska?  Why  not  give  them  the  privilege  that 
other  states  have  enjoyed — to  make  their  own  laws?" 

"I  admit,"  replied  Lincoln,  drily,  "that  the  farmer 
over  in  Kansas  or  Nebraska  is  quite  competent  to  gov- 
ern himself;  but  I  deny  his  right  to  govern  any  other 
person  without  that  person's  consent — be  he  white  or 
black."  Later  he  stated  the  case  for  the  slave  still  more 
boldly:  "What  my  distinguished  opponent  means  is, 
that  if  you  do  not  object  to  my  taking  my  hog  to  Ne- 
braska, therefore,  I  must  not  object  to  your  taking 
your  slave  over  there,  too.  I  admit  this  is  perfectly 
logical — if  there  is  no  difference  between  hogs  and 
negroes !" 

Lincoln  was  at  that  time  a  member  of  the  old  Whig 
party,  and  as  it  was  divided  over  the  question  of  slav- 
ery, a  new  party  was  organized,  in  1856 — the  Repub- 
lican. Lincoln  was  one  of  its  founders  and  first  mouth- 
pieces. He  saw  that  slavery  was  likely  to  split  the  na- 
tion, and  he  reiterated  the  Scriptural  saying,  "A  house 
divided  against  itself  cannot  stand." 

When  Douglas  came  up  for  reelection  to  the  Sen- 
ate, in  1858,  it  was  inevitable  that  he  should  have  to 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         135 

meet  Lincoln  in  public  debate,  as  the  latter  was  the 
nominee  of  the  new  political  party.  From  one  town  to 
another  in  Illinois  they  journeyed,  appearing  upon  the 
same  platforms  in  that  series  of  great  discussions  which 
has  become  historic.  In  the  present  book  it  falls  only 
within  our  province  to  treat  of  the  problem  of  their 
transportation. 

The  Illinois  Central  with  its  network  of  branch  lines 
which  were  even  then  beginning  to  cover  the  state  was 
the  railroad  most  frequently  used,  and  it  is  illuminating 
to  study  the  different  treatment  accorded  to  the  two 
protagonists.  That  Lincoln  got  the  "cold  shoulder" 
is  a  matter  of  record,  a  fact  which  is  all  the  more  re- 
markable when  we  consider  that  for  several  years  the 
Republican  nominee  had  been  representing,  and  was 
also  later  to  represent,  the  corporation  in  important  lit- 
igation taken  as  far  as  the  state  Supreme  Court. 

George  B.  McClellan,  then  Vice-President  of  the 
road,  was  a  personal  friend  of  Senator  Douglas  who, 
as  we  have  said,  was  a  candidate  for  reelection.  Again 
the  fact  of  Douglas'  being  a  political  power  in  the 
state  and  nation  may  have  had  its  influence  in  shaping 
the  action  of  the  officials.  At  any  rate,  there  is  abun- 
dant evidence  tending  to  show  that  the  behavior  of  both 
management  and  men  towards  the  Republican  Senator- 
ial aspirant  was  not  such  as  might  have  been  expected. 

"At  all  points  on  the  road  where  meetings  between 
the  two  great  politicians  were  held,"  says  Lamon  in 
his  "Recollections,"  "either  a  special  train  or  a  special 
car  was  furnished  to  Judge  Douglas ;  but  Mr.  Lincoln, 
when  he  failed  to  get  transportation  on  the  regular 
trains  in  time  to  meet  his  appointments,  was  reduced 


136      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

to  the  necessity  of  going  as  freight.  There  being  orders 
from  headquarters  to  permit  no  passenger  to  travel  on 
freight  trains,  Mr.  Lincoln's  persuasive  powers  were 
often  brought  into  requisition.  The  favor  was  granted 
or  refused  according  to  the  politics  of  the  conductor. 

"On  one  occasion,  in  going  to  meet  an  appointment 
in  the  southern  part  of  the  state — that  section  of  Il- 
linois called  Egypt — Mr.  Lincoln  and  I,  with  other 
friends  were  traveling  in  the  caboose  of  a  freight  train, 
when  we  were  switched  off  the  main  track  to  allow  a 
special  train  to  pass  in  which  Mr.  Lincoln's  more  aristo- 
cratic rival  was  being  conveyed.  The  passing  train  was 
decorated  with  banners  and  flags,  and  carried  a  band 
of  music  which  was  playing  'Hail  to  the  Chief.'  As  the 
train  whistled  past,  Mr.  Lincoln  broke  out  in  a  fit  of 
laughter  and  said:  'Boys,  the  gentlemen  in  that  car 
evidently  smelt  no  royalty  in  our  carriage !' " 

Henry  C.  Whitney,  for  many  years  on  the  rolls  of 
the  corporation,  waxes  very  wroth  and  sarcastic  in 
referring  to  this  difference  of  treatment.  Whitney  ac- 
companied Lincoln  from  Centralia  to  Mattoon  the 
night  before  the  Charleston  debate  on  a  regular  passen- 
ger train,  and  has  narrated  how  in  order  to  obtain  some 
rest  he  was  obliged  to  resort  to  a  strategem  to  secure 
his  friend  entrance  into  an  unoccupied  apartment  car 
attached  to  the  rear. 

"George  B.  McClellan  took  special  charge  of  Doug- 
las," says  Whitney  in  referring  to  the  campaign, 
"furnished  him  with  the  Director's  car — and  a  plat- 
form car  for  his  cannon,  and  frequently  went  with  him ! 
I  need  scarcely  add  that  the  commissary  department 
was  provided  with  several  huge  demijohns.   Lincoln 


T, 


— r 


B  N  N  S  "V 


"V  A  JEM  I  A. 


j[rmuunuuuumiw 


Courtesy,   Pennsylvaniia   Railroad 


CO 

K         (  N 


£  j^P   Until  Dec,  31,185  </,  unless  othenwi^  ordered.  '  % 


Courtesy,   Illinois   Central   Railroad 

LINCOLN    MEMENTOES 

1.  Typical  passenger  coach  in  use  between  1855  and  1865, 

2.  Pass  used  by  Lincoln  on  the  Illinois  Central, 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES  137 

travelled  on  an  attorney's  pass  the  same  as  I  did,  but 
he  got  no  further  courtesies.  .  .  .  The  entire  manage- 
ment of  the  road,  emulating  McClellan's  example,  was 
in  deadly  hostility  to  Lincoln." 

At  another  time  Whitney  said  that  "every  interest  of 
that  road  and  every  employee  was  against  Lincoln  and 
for  Douglas,"  which,  however,  is  an  exaggeration.  Con- 
trary to  popular  belief,  and  in  justice  to  the  corpora- 
tion, it  should  be  stated  that  Frederick  Trevor  Hill, 
who  has  made  a  careful  study  of  the  circumstances  at- 
tending the  debates,  thinks  that  Douglas  "was  charged 
a  good  round  sum  for  all  his  privileges." 

Probably  the  best  description  that  has  been  penned 
by  a  spectator  of  Lincoln  as  a  passenger  is  the  one 
given  by  Carl  Schurz,  who  first  met  him  in  1858  dur- 
ing the  series  of  debates.  Schurz  was  on  a  train  bound 
for  Quincy,  where  the  sixth  of  the  scheduled  political 
discussions  was  to  be  held. 

"The  car  in  which  I  traveled,"  says  Schurz,  "was  full 
of  men  who  discussed  the  absorbing  question  (of  slav- 
ery) with  great  animation.  A  member  of  the  Repub- 
lican State  Committee  accompanied  me  and  sat  by  my 
side. 

"All  at  once,  after  the  train  had  left  a  way-station, 
I  observed  a  great  commotion  among  my  fellow- 
passengers,  many  of  whom  jumped  from  their  seats 
and  pressed  eagerly  around  a  tall  man  who  had  just 
entered  the  car.  They  addressed  him  in  the  most  fa- 
miliar style:  'Hello,  Abe!  How  are  you?'  and  so  on. 
And  he  responded  in  the  same  manner :  'Good-evening, 
Ben!  How  are  you,  Joe?  Glad  to  see  you,  Dick!'  and 
there  was  much  laughter  at  some  things  he  said,  which, 


138      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

in  the  confusion  of  voices,  I  could  not  understand. 

"  'Why,'  exclaimed  my  companion,  the  committee- 
man, 'there's  Lincoln  himself !'  He  pressed  through  the 
crowd  and  introduced  me  to  Abraham  Lincoln,  whom 
I  then  saw  for  the  first  time. 

"I  must  confess  that  I  was  somewhat  startled  by  his 
appearance.  There  he  stood,  overtopping  by  several 
inches  all  those  surrounding  him.  Although  measuring 
something  over  six  feet  myself,  I  had,  when  standing 
quite  near  to  him,  to  throw  my  head  backward  in  or- 
der to  look  into  his  eyes.  That  swarthy  face,  with  its 
strong  features,  its  deep  furrows,  and  its  benignant, 
melancholy  eyes,  is  now  familiar  to  every  American.  It 
may  be  said  that  the  whole  civilized  world  knows  and 
loves  it.  At  that  time  it  was  clean-shaven  and  looked 
even  more  haggard  and  careworn  than  later,  when  it 
was  framed  in  whiskers. 

"On  his  head  he  wore  a  somewhat  battered  'stove- 
pipe hat.'  His  neck  emerged,  long  and  sinewy,  from  a 
white  collar  turned  down  over  a  thin  black  necktie. 
His  lank,  ungainly  body  was  clad  in  a  rusty  black 
frock-coat  with  sleeves  that  should  have  been  longer; 
but  his  arms  appeared  so  long  that  the  sleeves  of  a 
'store'  coat  could  hardly  have  been  expected  to  cover 
them  all  the  way  down  to  the  wrists.  His  black  trousers, 
too,  permitted  a  very  full  view  of  his  large  feet.  On  his 
left  arm  he  carried  a  gray  woolen  shawl,  which  evi- 
dently served  him  for  an  overcoat  in  chilly  weather. 
His  left  hand  held  a  cotton  umbrella  of  the  bulging 
kind,  and  also  a  black  satchel  that  bore  the  marks  of 
long  and  hard  usage.  His  right  he  had  kept  free  for 
hand-shaking,  of  which  there  was  no  end  until  every- 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         139 

body  in  the  car  seemed  to  be  satisfied.  I  had  seen  in 
Washington  and  in  the  West,  several  public  men  of 
rough  appearance,  but  none  whose  looks  seemed  quite 
so  uncouth,  not  to  say  grotesque,  as  Lincoln's. 

"He  received  me  with  an  off-hand  cordiality,  like  an 
old  acquaintance,  having  been  informed  of  what  I  was 
doing  in  the  campaign;  and  we  sat  down  together.  In 
a  somewhat  high-pitched  but  pleasant  voice,  he  began 
to  talk  to  me,  telling  me  much  about  the  points  he  and 
Douglas  had  made  in  the  debates  at  different  places, 
and  about  those  he  intended  to  make  at  Quincy.  .  .  . 
When,  in  a  tone  of  perfect  ingenuousness,  he  asked 
me — a  young  beginner  in  politics — what  I  thought 
about  this  and  that,  I  should  have  felt  myself  very 
much  honored  by  his  confidence,  had  he  permitted  me 
to  regard  him  as  a  great  man.  But  he  talked  in  so  sim- 
ple and  familiar  a  strain,  and  his  manner  and  homely 
phrases  were  so  absolutely  free  from  any  semblance  of 
self-consciousness  or  pretension  of  superiority,  that  I 
soon  felt  as  if  I  had  known  him  all  my  life,  and  we  had 
very  long  been  close  friends.  He  interspersed  our  con- 
versations with  all  sorts  of  quaint  stories,  each  of  which 
had  a  witty  point  applicable  to  the  subject  in  hand, 
and  not  seldom  concluded  an  argument  in  such  a  man- 
ner that  nothing  more  was  to  be  said.  He  seemed  to 
enjoy  his  own  jests  in  a  childlike  way.  His  usually  sad- 
looking  eyes  would  kindle  with  a  merry  twinkle,  and  he 
himself  led  in  the  laughter ;  and  his  laugh  was  so  genu- 
ine, hearty,  and  contagious  that  nobody  could  fail 
to  join  in  it." 

Horace  White,  who  accompanied  Abraham  Lincoln 
during  the  entire  debates  as  a  reporter  for  the  Chicago 


140      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Press  and  Tribune,  narrates  the  following  incident  in 
which  the  Republican  candidate  came  very  nearly  be- 
ing carried  by  his  station  on  account  of  taking  a  nap 
from  which  he  happened  to  wake  just  as  the  train  was 
pulling  out.  His  traveling  companion,  however,  was 
not  so  fortunate. 

After  the  joint  debate  at  Freeport,  the  Lincoln  party 
went  to  Carlinville,  in  Macoupin  County,  where  Lincoln 
and  John  M.  Palmer  delivered  speeches  for  the  Repub- 
lican cause.  Their  next  destination  was  Clinton,  DeWitt 
County,  which  was  reached  by  way  of  Springfield  and 
Decatur. 

"During  this  journey,"  relates  Mr.  White,  "an  in- 
cident occurred  which  gave  unbounded  mirth  to  Mr. 
Lincoln  at  my  expense. 

"We  left  Springfield,  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  eve- 
ning for  Decatur,  where  we  were  to  change  cars  and 
take  the  north-bound  train  on  the  Illinois  Central  Rail- 
road. I  was  very  tired  and  I  curled  myself  up  as  best 
I  could  on  the  seat  to  take  a  nap,  asking  Mr.  Lincoln 
to  wake  me  up  at  Decatur,  which  he  promised  to  do. 

"I  went  to  sleep,  and  when  I  did  awake  I  had  the 
sensation  of  having  been  asleep  a  long  time.  It  was  day- 
light and  I  knew  that  we  should  have  reached  Decatur 
before  midnight.  Mr.  Lincoln's  seat  was  vacant.  While 
I  was  pulling  myself  together,  the  conductor  opened 
the  door  of  the  car  and  shouted,  'State  Line.'  This  was 
the  name  of  a  shabby  little  town  on  the  border  of 
Indiana.  There  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  get  out  and 
wait  for  the  next  train  going  back  to  Decatur. 

"About  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  I  found  my  way  to 
Clinton.   The  meeting  was  over,  of  course,   and  the 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         141 

Chicago  Tribune  had  lost  its  expected  report,  and  I 
was  out  of  pocket  for  railroad  fares. 

"I  wended  my  way  to  the  house  of  Mr.  C.  H.  Moore, 
where  Mr.  Lincoln  was  staying  and  where  I  too  had 
been  an  expected  guest.  When  Mr.  Lincoln  saw  me 
coming  up  the  garden  path,  his  lungs  began  to  crow 
like  a  chanticleer,  and  I  thought  he  would  laugh,  sans 
intermission,  an  hour  by  his  dial.  He  paused  long 
enough  to  say  that  he  also  had  fallen  asleep  and  did 
not  wake  up  till  the  train  was  starting  from  Decatur. 
He  had  very  nearly  been  carried  past  the  station  him- 
self, and,  in  his  haste  to  get  out,  had  forgotten  all  about 
his  promise  to  waken  me.  Then  he  began  to  laugh  again. 

"The  affair  was  so  irresistibly  funny,  in  his  view, 
that  he  told  the  incident  several  times  in  Washington 
City  when  I  chanced  to  meet  him,  after  he  became  Pres- 
ident, to  any  company  who  might  be  present,  and  with 
such  contagious  drollery  that  all  who  heard  it  would 
shake  with  laughter." 

Another  reporter  who  has  left  us  an  interesting  view 
of  the  Republican  candidate  for  Senator  is  Henry  Vil- 
lard,  the  noted  journalist,  who  had  an  interview  with 
Lincoln  in  a  box  car  at  a  small  way  station,  while 
waiting  for  a  train  during  a  thunderstorm.  Villard 
was  reporting  the  debates  for  an  eastern  paper,  the 
New  York  Staats-Zeitung. 

At  Freeport,  where  the  second  debate  of  the  series 
was  held,  Villard  met  Lincoln  for  the  first  time.  There- 
after he  frequently  met  him  during  the  course  of  the 
campaign,  and  it  is  one  of  these  meetings  which  Vil- 
lard has  described  in  detail  to  which  we  refer. 

"He    and    I    met    accidentally,"    narrates    Villard, 


142      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"about  nine  o'clock  on  a  hot,  sultry  evening,  at  a  flag 
railroad  station  about  twenty  miles  west  of  Springfield, 
on  my  return  from  a  great  meeting  at  Petersburg  in 
Menard  County.  He  bad  been  driven  to  the  station  in  a 
buggy  and  left  there  alone.  I  was  already  there. 

"The  train  that  we  intended  to  take  for  Springfield 
was  about  due.  After  waiting  vainly  for  half  an  hour 
for  its  arrival,  a  thunderstorm  compelled  us  to  take 
refuge  in  an  empty  freight  car  standing  on  a  side  track, 
there  being  no  buildings  of  any  sort  at  the  station. 

"We  squatted  down  on  the  floor  of  the  car  and  fell 
to  talking  on  all  sorts  of  subjects.  It  was  then  and  there 
he  told  me  that,  when  he  was  clerking  in  a  country  store, 
his  highest  political  ambition  was  to  be  a  member  of  the 
State  Legislature. 

"  'Since  then,  of  course,'  he  said  laughingly,  'I  have 
grown  some,  but  my  friends  got  me  into  this  business 
(meaning  the  canvass).  I  did  not  consider  myself  quali- 
fied for  the  United  States  Senate,  and  it  took  a  long 
time  to  persuade  myself  that  I  was.  Now,  to  be  sure,' 
he  continued,  with  another  of  his  peculiar  laughs,  'I  am 
convinced  that  I  am  good  enough  for  it ;  but  in  spite  of 
it  all,  I  am  saying  to  myself  every  day:  "It  is  too  big 
a  thing  for  you ;  you  will  never  get  it."  Mary  [his  wife] 
insists,  however,  that  I  am  going  to  be  Senator  and 
President  of  the  United  States,  too.' 

"These  last  words  he  followed  with  a  roar  of  laugh- 
ter, with  his  arms  around  his  knees,  and  shaking  all  over 
with  mirth  at  his  wife's  ambition.  'Just  think,'  he  ex- 
claimed, 'of  such  a  sucker  as  me  for  President !' 

"He  then  fell  to  asking  questions  regarding  my  ante- 
cedents, and  expressed  some  surprise  at  my  fluent  use 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES        l¥6 

of  English  after  so  short  a  residence  in  the  United 
States.  Next  he  wanted  to  know  whether  it  was  true 
that  most  of  the  educated  people  in  Germany  were 
'infidels.5 

"I  answered  that  they  were  not  openly  professed 
infidels,  but  such  a  conclusion  might  be  drawn  from  the 
fact  that  most  of  them  were  not  church-goers. 

"  'I  do  not  wonder  at  that,'  he  rejoined;  'my  own  in- 
clination is  that  way.'  " 

Lincoln  was  no  doubt  referring  to  his  own  rather 
desultory  church  attendance,  but  Villard,  a  confessed 
agnostic,  professed  to  believe  that  Lincoln  entertained 
views  similar  to  his  own. 

"Our  talk  continued  till  half-past  ten,"  Villard  con- 
tinues, "when  the  belated  train  arrived.  I  cherish  this 
accidental  rencontre  as  one  of  my  most  precious  recol- 
lections, since  my  companion  of  that  night  has  become 
one  of  the  greatest  figures  in  history." 

By  way  of  contrasting  the  inherent  qualities  of  the 
great  political  rivals,  Lincoln  and  Douglas,  B.  F. 
Smith,  the  horticulturalist,  has  left  on  record  the  im- 
pressions he  received  in  1859  while  employed  as  a 
brakeman  on  the  Illinois  Central. 

"Senator  Douglas  rode  with  me  in  the  brakeman's 
seat  from  Odin  to  Champaign  one  trip  in  1859,"  said 
Smith  in  relating  the  occurrence.  "He  offered  me  a 
cigar,  which  I  refused,  saying  that  I  had  never  learned 
to  smoke.  At  Champaign  he  took  a  seat  in  the  second- 
class  car,  next  to  the  baggage  car.  Here  he  emptied 
a  small  bottle  of  liquor  into  his  stomach,  or  nearly  all 
of  it.  When  I  went  through  the  car  at  Chicago,  he 
roused  up  before  his  friends  came  to  meet  him  and 


144      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

offered  me  a  drink  from  his  bottle,  which  I  refused.  It 
seemed  strange  to  him  for  a  railway  brakeman  to  refuse 
to  smoke  or  drink  with  him. 

"The  other  distinguished  man  who  rode  with  me 
about  that  time  was  Abraham  Lincoln.  He  sat  in  my 
seat  on  the  run  from  Champaign  to  Tolono.  It  was 
about  sunrise.  There  was  only  one  farm  then  between 
those  two  stations,  in  1859,  all  green  prairie.  A  beau- 
tiful sun  rising  attracted  Mr.  Lincoln.  He  called  my 
attention  to  it, — the  sun  just  rising  over  those  beauti- 
ful, undulating  hills.  He  wanted  me  to  share  with  him 
his  admiration  of  the  scene.  I  admitted  that  it  was 
lovely.  I  had  been  seeing  the  sun  rise  every  morning 
between  those  two  stations,  as  we  left  Chicago  at  9  p.  m., 
and  hadn't  thought  much  about  the  beauty  of  it.  Mr. 
Lincoln  had  been  asleep  until  we  reached  Champaign. 

"Well,  the  moral  of  this  is  in  the  contrast  of  the 
two  great  men.  One  of  them  tempted  me  by  offering 
a  cigar  at  the  beginning  of  the  journey  and  at  the  end 
of  it  desired  me  to  help  him  empty  a  bottle  of  whiskey. 
The  other  called  my  attention  to  that  beautiful  sunrise 
over  the  virgin  prairies  of  Illinois  and  invited  me  to 
share  with  him  the  impression  of  it." 

A  retired  conductor  of  the  Chicago  and  Alton  road 
has  left  his  impressions  of  Lincoln  as  a  passenger  whom 
he  often  had  on  his  run.  He  was  accustomed  to  having 
many  of  the  most  distinguished  Illinois  politicians  of 
the  day  on  his  train,  a  comparison  with  whom  did  not 
place  Lincoln  at  a  disadvantage. 

"Lincoln  was  the  most  folksy  of  any  of  them,"  says 
this  trainman.  "He  put  on  no  airs.  He  did  not  hold 
himself  distant  from  any  man.  But  there  was  something 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         145 

about  him  which  we  plain  people  couldn't  explain 
that  made  us  stand  a  little  in  awe  of  him.  I  now  know 
what  it  was,  but  didn't  then.  It  was  because  he  was  a 
greater  man  than  any  other  one  we  had  ever  seen.  You 
could  get  near  him  in  a  sort  of  neighborly  way,  as 
though  you  had  always  known  him,  but  there  was  some- 
thing tremendous  between  you  and  him  all  the  time. 

"I  have  eaten  with  him  many  times  at  the  railroad 
eating  houses,  and  you  get  very  neighborly  if  you  eat 
together  in  a  railroad  restaurant;  at  least  we  did  in 
those  days.  Everybody  tried  to  get  as  near  Lincoln 
as  possible  when  he  was  eating,  because  he  was  such 
good  company,  but  we  always  looked  at  him  with  a 
kind  of  wonder.  We  couldn't  exactly  make  him  out. 

"Sometimes  I  would  see  what  looked  like  dreadful 
loneliness  in  his  look,  and  I  used  to  wonder  what  he  was 
thinking  about.  Whatever  it  was,  he  was  thinking  all 
alone.  It  wasn't  a  solemn  look,  like  Stephen  A.  Douglas 
sometimes  had.  Douglas  sometimes  made  me  think  of 
an  owl.  He  used  to  stare  at  you  with  his  great  dark  eyes 
in  a  way  that  almost  frightened  you.  Lincoln  never 
frightened  anybody.  No  one  was  afraid  of  him,  but 
there  was  something  about  him  that  made  plain  folks 
feel  toward  him  a  good  deal  as  a  child  feels  toward 
his  father,  because  you  know  every  child  looks  upon  his 
father  as  a  wonderful  man." 

Robert  H.  Browne,  the  young  and  enthusiastic  sec- 
retary of  the  Champaign  County  Republican  Commit- 
tee in  1858,  has  recorded  his  recollections  of  a  train 
journey  he  made  with  Lincoln  from  Bloomington  to 
Clinton.  They  had  both  been  in  attendance  at  a  Con- 
gressional convention   which  had   renominated   Owen 


146      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Love  joy,  and  left  Bloomington  about  ten  o'clock  at 
night.  And  while  their  destination  lay  but  twenty  miles 
south,  it  is  a  sad  commentary  on  the  railroad  transpor- 
tation of  their  day  to  say  that  it  was  midnight  when 
Clinton  was  reached. 

Browne  says  that  "there  were  crowds,  noise  and  con- 
fusion about  the  station"  when  they  took  their  train, 
which  was  filled  with  passengers  returning  home.  Lin- 
coln and  his  companion  took  a  smoker,  about  the  middle 
of  the  car. 

There  was  a  very  noisy  personage  in  the  front  who 
was  speaking  disrespectfully  of  Lincoln.  Browne  did 
not  know  him  and  asked  Lincoln  who  he  was.  Lincoln 
smiled  drily,  and  then  raising  his  voice  to  its  shrill 
pitch,  said: 

"That's  Long  Jim  Davis,  of .  There  are  two  of 

them,  both  small  politicians  in  the  same  town ;  and  the 
'Short  Jim'  Davis  is  very  much  the  best  man.  He  has 
something  in  him  like  integrity  and  gratitude;  but 
this  one  hasn't  a  bit  of  either  in  his  make-up,  and  is 
only  a  man  because  he  looks  like  one.  Through  my  rec- 
ommendation he  was  given  an  appointment  under  the 
Harrison  administration  in  1841,  and  returned  to  the 
same  place  under  Taylor  in  1849,  with  a  relative  or 
two  crowded  into  office  employment  with  him.  He  not 
only  has  not  recognized  my  help  in  a  grateful  way,  but 
has  been  busy  ever  since  the  Democrats  turned  him  out 
in  abusing  me.  He  claimed  to  be  a  Whig,  but  kept 
blaming  me  for  not  keeping  him  in  office,  as  he  insisted 
I  was  able  to  do,  against  all  parties  and  what  was  com- 
mon practice  of  the  Democrats  in  making  removals. 
Now  I  understand  he  has  turned  Democrat,  with  all 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         147 

the  zeal  of  a  new  convert,  and  is  set  on  me  like  a  little 
fice,  to  provoke  and  annoy  me.  I  am  to  speak  in  the 
afternoon;  and  he  will  raise  his  lofty  voice  in  his  lost- 
office  sort  of  disappointment  that  will  be  chiefly  per- 
sonal strictures  of  myself.  He  has  been  running  very 
loosely  for  some  time  that  way,  as  I  learn.  For  myself, 
I  am  glad  to  be  rid  of  him,  even  on  his  terms;  but 
before  I  take  up  the  subject  of  my  speech,  I  am  going 
to  take  him  up  first,  and  peel  him  as  clean  as  you  can 
strip  a  hickory  sprout  when  the  sap  rises  in  the  spring." 

While  talking,  Lincoln's  voice  "rang  through  the 
car,"  as  Browne  says,  and  evidently  penetrated  the 
hides  of  "Long  Jim"  and  his  cohorts,  for  they  relapsed 
into  silence  and  not  even  the  bandying  of  Browne  could 
bring  them  out.  Indeed,  when  the  train  arrived  at 
Clinton,  the  squelched  politician  failed  to  get  off  and 
did  not  show  up  at  the  political  gathering  next  day. 

"When  the  talk  quieted  down,"  Browne  relates,  "Mr. 
Lincoln  doubled  himself  down  on  two  seats  turned  to- 
gether, where  he  took  a  good  hour's  sleep.  When  he 
was  comfortably  at  his  ease,  he  could  lie  down  and  take 
an  hour's  sound  refreshing  sleep  almost  anywhere, 
rise  up  from  it  rested,  invigorated,  and  ready  for  the 
irregular  and  laborious  work  of  his  campaigns,  for 
which  no  man  had  the  health,  strength  and  endurance 
he  then  had. 

"It  was  almost  twelve  o'clock  when  we  left  the  de- 
serted railway  station  at  Clinton.  He  was  strong,  vigor- 
ous and  active,  and  had  something  like  the  speed  of  a 
race  horse,  as  I  then  thought,  after  the  run  to  the  hotel. 
I  was  about  a  foot  under  his  height  and  not  near  his 
weight,  but  young  and  vigorous. 


148      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"He  took  my  arm  as  we  stepped  from  the  platform, 
saying:  'Come,  Robert,  now  for  our  hotel  and  a  roost, 
and  a  late  one  for  me,  as  I  have  nothing  much  to  do 
before  noon,  seeing  that  "Long  Jim"  has  run  away.' 

"He  almost  lifted  me  from  the  ground  in  his  strong, 
firm  grasp,  that  filled  me  besides  with  a  sense  of  the 
wonderful  energy  of  the  man.  We  made  the  half-mile 
trot  and  run  to  the  hotel  in  a  few  minutes,  where  a 
sleepy  watchman  took  us  upstairs  to  the  end  rooms  of 
a  narrow  hall,  giving  us  two  little  boxes  on  either  side 
of  it,  with  the  doors  opening  and  facing  each  other. 
He  took  us  there  because  these  were  farthest  removed 
from  the  noisy  part  of  the  house,  where  Mr.  Lincoln 
could  take  an  undisturbed  sleep  in  the  morning.  The 
speed  from  the  train  had  stirred  up  our  blood,  so  that 
neither  of  us  was  ready  for  the  sleep  we  were  anxious 
for. 

"In  this  mood,  with  our  doors  wide  open,  as  the  out- 
side windows  were  also,  Mr.  Lincoln  called  me  into  his 
room,  where,  in  it  and  the  narrow  hall,  we  sat  over  two 
hours.  ...  In  his  pleasing  and  entertaining  talk,  that 
was  sure  to  interest  any  one  to  whom  he  gave  his  con- 
fidence, he  reviewed  the  exciting  passages  of  the  day  in 
humor  and  pathos  that  would  have  held  a  houseful  in 
close  attention.  .  .  . 

"Our  pleasant  review  closed  after  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning  when  the  tallow-candle  burned  out  in  the 
socket  of  the  old  brass  candle-stick.  I  rose  early  to 
take  my  road  home  across  the  country,  leaving  him  to 
the  rest  he  needed,  where  he  slept  until  nearly  noon, 
as  he  afterwards  told  me.  To  me  it  was  a  revelation, 


LINCOLN-DOUGLAS  DEBATES         149 

always  remembered,  as  the  day  and  night  when  we  made 
the  election  of  Love  joy  a  certainty,  preventing  serious 
party  division,  and  I  had  looked  into  the  soul  of  Lin- 
coln." 


CHAPTER    XV 

LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES 

The  outward  result  of  the  Lincoln-Douglas  debates, 
as  nearly  every  schoolboy  knows,  was  a  defeat  for  Lin- 
coln. A  Senator  was  not  at  that  time  chosen  by  direct 
vote  of  the  people,  and  the  State  Legislature  reelected 
Douglas  as  the  safer  man.  Lincoln  was  deemed  too  radi- 
cal for  that  hair-trigger  time.  He  returned  to  Spring- 
field and  once  more  resumed  his  interrupted  practice  of 
law.  Political  honors  seemed  more  remote  from  him  than 
ever. 

During  the  Fifties  he  had  become  a  familiar  figure 
in  "riding  the  circuit,"  or  attending  the  various  courts 
in  his  district  on  legal  business.  The  Eighth  Judicial 
Circuit  then  included  fourteen  counties,  namely  San- 
gamon, Tazewell,  Woodford,  McLean,  Logan,  DeWitt, 
Champaign,  Vermillion,  Piatt,  Edgar,  Shelby,  Moul- 
trie, Macon  and  Christian,  which  embraced  an  area  of 
about  a  hundred  and  ten  by  a  hundred  and  forty  miles. 
However,  in  1853  by  legislation  enacted,  the  last  six 
enumerated  were  removed  from  this  circuit. 

Lincoln  was  the  only  one  of  the  attorneys  riding  the 
Eighth  Circuit  who  traveled  over  the  entire  district, 
attending  every  session  of  the  court  and  remaining  un- 
til the  end.  This  was  his  custom  up  to  1858,  when  he 
turned  his  attention  to  an  active  participation  in  poli- 
tics. 

150 


TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES     151 

His  friend  Whitney,  one  of  this  coterie  of  itinerant 
lawyers,  says  that  "during  the  greater  part  of  the 
time  that  Lincoln  rode  the  circuit,  railways  did  not 
form  the  usual  means  of  travel;  and  our  methods  of 
locomotion  and  accommodation  on  the  circuit  were  of 
the  era  of  the  stage-coach  and  country  taverns,  and 
those  who  are  without  experience  cannot  know  to  how 
great  an  extent  the  advent  of  the  locomotive  is  the  exo- 
dus of  sentiment,  and  a  destruction  of  homely  simplic- 
ity." And  in  speaking  of  the  county  alignment  of  1853 
the  same  authority  says  that  "railways  had  just  made 
their  advent  when  I  first  settled  in  that  circuit,  and 
five  out  of  eight  county  seats  were  reached  by  modes 
other  than  rail." 

In  the  summer  of  1855  Lincoln  was  in  Cincinnati, 
being  retained  as  one  of  the  leading  attorneys  in  the 
now  famous  patent  case  of  McCormick  vs.  Manny. 
Here  he  spent  about  a  week,  and  it  was  during  this 
time  that  he  received  the  so-called  "snub"  from  Stan- 
ton, the  truth  of  which  it  is  hard  to  determine. 

In  1856  as  head  of  the  Fremont  and  Dayton  electoral 
ticket  for  Illinois,  Lincoln  "traversed  the  state  in  every 
direction"  as  his  secretaries  put  it,  delivering  about 
fifty  speeches  altogether.  A  little  known  fact,  however, 
is  that  during  the  campaign  he  went  outside  the  borders 
of  his  state  and  delivered  an  address  at  Kalamazoo, 
Michigan.  This  was  at  a  Republican  rally  in  the  latter 
part  of  August.  In  order  to  reach  Kalamazoo  he  un- 
doubtedly made  use  of  the  newly-completed  Michigan 
Central  Railroad  from  Chicago,  and  there  is  a  story  to 
the  effect  that  while  the  train  stopped  for  a  time  at 
Niles,  he  got  off  for  a  closer  view  of  his  surroundings. 


152      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

In  1858  during  the  Lincoln-Douglas  debates  he  cov- 
ered the  state  of  Illinois  pretty  thoroughly.  It  is  not 
so  generally  known,  however,  that  he  invaded  the  boun- 
daries of  Iowa;  but  on  the  evening  of  October  9  he 
spoke  in  Burlington.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that 
he  also  addressed  a  group  of  school  children  in  Keokuk, 
farther  down  the  Mississippi,  upon  an  occasion  while 
the  boat  on  which  he  was  traveling  was  "wooding  up." 

A  brief  record  of  journeys  into  other  states,  at  this 
period,  should  also  be  made. 

Shortly  after  the  conclusion  of  the  debates  with 
Douglas  he  delivered  an  address  in  Indianapolis,  In- 
diana. In  the  following  spring  he  visited  Dubuque, 
Iowa,  with  a  party  of  Illinois  Central  Railroad  offi- 
cials, mention  of  which  is  made  in  another  chapter.  Late 
in  July  or  the  beginning  of  August  of  that  same  year, 
1859,  he  journeyed  to  Kansas,  returning  by  boat  part 
of  the  way.  While  tarrying  at  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  he 
decided  to  go  to  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,  where  he  had 
some  real  estate  investments.  It  was  during  his  stay  at 
Council  Bluffs  that  he  first  met  General  Dodge  and 
became  interested  in  the  projection  of  a  contemplated 
Pacific  railroad. 

In  September  he  went  to  Ohio,  fulfilling  political 
engagements,  speaking  twice  in  Columbus  on  the  16th. 
The  following  afternoon,  enroute  for  Cincinnati,  he 
addressed  crowds  at  Dayton  and  Hamilton.  After  his 
speech  at  Cincinnati,  that  evening,  there  is  nothing 
more  chronicled  of  his  movements  on  that  journey. 

Later  in  the  same  month  he  visited  Wisconsin,  ad- 
dressing the  State  Historical  Society  at  a  Fair  held  in 


TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES      153 

Milwaukee  on  the  30th.  The  next  day  on  his  way  home 
he  delivered  a  speech  at  Beloit  in  the  afternoon  and  one 
at  Janesville  in  the  evening. 

In  the  latter  part  of  November  Lincoln  left  home 
for  another  trip  West,  this  time  of  a  political  nature. 
He  came  into  St.  Joseph,  across  Iowa,  over  what  was 
then  known  as  the  Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  Railroad, 
and  was  ferried  across  the  river  to  Elwood,  Kansas, 
where  he  made  his  first  speech.  The  Hannibal  and  St. 
Joseph  road  is  now  a  part  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington 
and  Quincy.  While  in  Kansas  Lincoln  spoke  at  many 
points  in  addition  to  Elwood,  among  them,  Troy,  Don- 
iphan, Atchison,  Leavenworth,  and  Stockton. 

It  is  of  particular  interest  to  note  that  there  was  not 
a  mile  of  railroad  in  the  territory  at  that  time,  and 
all  the  traveling  was  done  by  horse  and  wagon,  over 
roads  that  were  knee-deep  in  dust  in  dry  weather  and 
hub-deep  in  mud  after  a  rain.  But  Lincoln  was  used 
to  this.  It  probably  brought  back  to  him  memories  of 
his  own  early  days. 

Lincoln  made  frequent  trips  to  Chicago,  beginning 
back  as  far  as  1847,  or  even  earlier.  In  1856,  the 
year  of  the  birth  of  the  Republican  Party,  and  the  time 
when  he  may  be  said  to  have  reached  the  hey-day  of  his 
legal  career,  there  were  already  eleven  different  lines 
centering  in  the  rapidly  growing  metropolis  on  the 
Lake.  Here  might  be  met  travelers  from  every  part  of 
the  Union,  and  Lincoln  was  brought  into  intimate  con- 
tact with  many  outside  influences.  It  proved  to  be  still 
another  means  by  which  his  name  was  becoming  famil- 
iar in  widely  scattered  sections  of  the  country. 


154      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

He  doubtless  made  trips  to  St.  Louis,  also,  to  appear 
before  the  United  States  Court  there,  although  there 
is  little  on  record  to  this  effect. 

In  the  late  Fifties  the  railroads  were  emerging  from 
their  earlier  crudities  into  some  measure  of  comfort. 
The  roadbeds  were  being  more  solidly  ballasted.  Loco- 
motives were  heavier  and  faster.  The  crude,  rickety 
coaches  were  being  replaced  by  cars  of  more  substantial 
design,  fitted  with  better  springs  and  gradually  in- 
stalling comforts  and  conveniences.  Then  an  inventor 
by  the  name  of  George  M.  Pullman  conceived  the  bril- 
liant idea  of  the  sleeping-car,  where  the  traveler  could 
actually  retire  and  rest. 

The  first  cars  built  by  Pullman  were  tried  out  on 
the  Chicago  and  Alton  Railroad,  and  it  is  said  that 
Lincoln  once  rode  in  the  pioneer  sleeping-car.  It  is  one 
of  those  rumors  that  is  hard  to  pin  down  to  cold  fact. 
A  letter  of  inquiry  to  President  Bierd,  of  this  road, 
elicits  the  following  reply: 

"I  think  there  is  no  question  about  that.  Mr.  Pullman 
spent  almost  his  entire  time  from  1857  to  1863  build- 
ing and  perfecting  the  sleeping-car  which  has  since 
come  to  bear  his  name,  and  as  his  first  experiment  ran 
on  our  line  between  Springfield  and  Chicago,  it  is  reas- 
onable to  suppose  that  Mr.  Lincoln  rode  in  this  car 
many  times. 

"In  fact,  we  had  in  our  offices  here  in  Chicago,  for 
quite  a  while,  an  extra  long  sofa  couch,  which  tradition 
says  was  carried  in  this  same  sleeping-car  and  used  by 
Lincoln  frequently ;  from  the  fact  that  the  berth  space 
was  so  contracted  that  the  President  found  it  difficult 


TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES      155 

to  curl  himself  up  in  the  interior  of  the  berth  and  found 
more  comfort  and  rest  on  the  couch." 

From  the  time  that  he  came  into  close  contact  with 
the  railroad  as  a  means  of  transportation,  Lincoln 
was  accustomed  to  using  this  method  of  travel  free  of 
charge,  due  largely  to  his  legal  work  for  the  roads. 
We  know  that  for  many  years  he  held  an  annual  pass 
over  the  Illinois  Central ;  he  also  carried  one  good  over 
the  Great  Western,  now  the  Wabash;  and  for  a  time 
at  least,  one  that  he  used  over  the  predecessors  of  the 
Chicago  and  Alton.  As  a  Member  of  Congress  he  natu- 
rally availed  himself  of  the  privileges  then  extended 
to  such  personages,  as  well  as  distinguished  travelers 
and  prominent  citizens,  and  the  transportation  charges 
incurred  in  his  two  journeys  to  New  England  were 
probably  negligible. 

Whitney  mentions  an  occasion  early  in  April,  1858, 
when  he  boarded  a  midnight  train  at  Champaign  for 
Chicago,  and  found  Lincoln  on  board.  The  latter  ex- 
plained that  he  too  was  bound  for  the  same  destination, 
and  as  he  held  passes  over  the  Illinois  Central  and  Great 
Western  both,  and  none  over  the  direct  route — the 
Chicago  and  Alton — he  was  using  that  circuitous  way 
of  getting  to  Chicago. 

A  story  illustrating  Lincoln's  spirit  of  kindliness  is 
given  by  a  lady  of  Springfield  whose  name  is  not  men- 
tioned. In  it  he  appears  in  the  role  of  "hackman,"  and 
according  to  Mrs.  Pickett,  wife  of  General  Pickett,  the 
incident  occurred  just  after  his  return  from  Congress. 

"My  first  strong  impression  of  Mr.  Lincoln,"  says 
the  lady,  "was  made  by  one  of  his  kind  deeds. 


156      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"I  was  going  with  a  little  friend  for  my  first  trip 
alone  on  the  railroad  cars.  It  was  an  epoch  of  my  life. 
I  had  planned  for  it  and  dreamed  of  it  for  weeks. 

"The  day  I  was  to  go  came,  but  as  the  hour  of  the 
train  approached,  the  hackman,  through  some  neglect, 
failed  to  call  for  my  trunk.  As  the  minutes  went  on,  I 
realized,  in  a  panic  of  grief,  that  I  should  miss  the 
train.  I  was  standing  by  the  gate,  my  hat  and  gloves 
on,  when  Mr.  Lincoln  came  by. 

"  'Why,  what's  the  matter  ?'  he  asked,  and  I  poured 
out  all  my  story. 

"  'How  big's  the  trunk?  There's  still  time,  if  it  isn't 
too  big.'  And  he  pushed  through  the  gate  and  up  to  the 
door. 

"My  mother  and  I  took  him  up  to  my  room,  where 
my  little  old-fashioned  trunk  stood,  locked  and  tied. 

"  'Oh,  ho,'  he  cried ;  'wipe  your  eyes  and  come  on 
quick.'  And  before  I  knew  what  he  was  going  to  do,  he 
had  shouldered  the  trunk,  was  down  stairs,  and  striding 
out  of  the  yard.  Down  the  street  he  went,  fast  as  his 
long  legs  could  carry  him.  I  trotted  behind,  drying 
my  tears  as  I  went. 

"We  reached  the  station  in  time.  Mr.  Lincoln  put  me 
on  the  train,  kissed  me  good-bye,  and  told  me  to  have 
a  good  time.  It  was  just  like  him." 

And  here  is  another  story  of  Lincoln  as  a  traveler 
that  we  must  include. 

In  1855  while  in  Cincinnati  engaged  on  the  McCor- 
mick  reaper  case,  Lincoln  and  a  young  lawyer  named 
Ralph  Emerson,  both  of  whom  with  others  had  been 
engaged  by  the  defendant,  took  a  long  walk  together. 
The  hearing  had  been  ended,  the  arguments  on  both 


TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES      157 

sides  concluded,  and  Lincoln  was  in  one  of  the  dejected 
moods  of  his  fitful  temperament. 

As  they  continued  their  stroll  they  found  themselves 
down  by  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  River. 

Suddenly  Lincoln  stopped,  and  pointing  to  the  Ken- 
tucky shores  across  the  river,  delivered  himself  of  his 
bit  of  philosophy  on  the  slavery  question  in-so-far  as 
it  pertained  to  a  certain  phase  of  railroading  which  had 
come  under  his  personal  observation: 

"Here  is  this  fine  city  of  Cincinnati,  and  over  there 
is  the  little  town  of  Covington.  Covington  has  just  as 
good  a  location  as  Cincinnati,  and  a  fine  country  back 
of  it.  It  was  settled  before  Cincinnati.  Why  is  it  not  a 
bigger  city?  Just  because  of  slavery,  and  nothing  else. 
My  people  used  to  live  over  there,  and  I  know. 

"Why,  the  other  day  I  went  to  ship  my  family  on  a 
little  railroad  they  have  got  down  there  from  Coving- 
ton back  into  the  country.  I  went  to  the  ticket  office  and 
found  a  lank  fellow  sprawling  over  the  counter,  who 
had  to  count  up  quite  a  while  on  his  fingers  how  much 
two  and  one-half  fares  would  come  to.  While  over  here 
in  Cincinnati,  when  I  shove  my  money  through  the  win- 
dow, the  three  tickets  and  the  change  come  flying  back 
at  me  quick.  And  it  is  just  the  same  way  in  all  things 
through  Kentucky.  That  is  what  slavery  does  for  the 
white  man." 

In  April,  1860,  Abraham  Lincoln  accepted  an  invita- 
tion from  Julius  White,  then  Harbor  Master  of  Chi- 
cago and  member  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  to  visit  him 
at  his  home  in  Evanston,  a  rising  suburb  of  Chicago. 
It  should  be  remembered  that  Lincoln  was  well  ac- 
quainted in  Chicago  at  this  time    and  had  been  for 


158      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

years,  by  virtue  of  his  legal  practice  and  prominence 
as  a  politician. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Harvey  B.  Hurd  was  selected 
to  accompany  him  from  Chicago  to  Evanston,  which 
was  reached  by  what  was  then  known  as  the  Chicago 
and  Milwaukee  Railroad,  now  part  of  the  Chicago  and 
Northwestern.  An  evening  train  was  used. 

"On  the  way,"  narrates  Hurd,  "Mr.  Lincoln  and  I 
occupied  the  same  seat  in  the  railway  car,  that  next  to 
the  stove.  Putting  his  long  legs  up  behind  the  stove 
and  leaning  down  toward  me,  he  related  to  me  some  of 
the  more  amusing  episodes  in  his  New  England  tour, 
such  as  he  thought  I  would  recognize  as  characteristic 
of  Yankeedom  (I  had  told  him  I  was  a  native  of  Con- 
necticut), some  of  them  bringing  out  in  strong  light 
the  issues  of  the  campaign  and  how  he  presented  them. 

"Calling  to  mind  his  great  debate  with  Mr.  Douglas 
and  how  he  had  grown  in  popularity  all  over  the  coun- 
try, and  that  he  was  being  talked  of  for  the  presidency, 
I  could  not  help  a  passing  analysis  of  his  character- 
istics. The  way  he  impressed  me  at  that  time  was  well 
summed  up  by  a  countryman  at  another  time.  'Not  that 
he  knew  it  all,  and  that  I  knew  little  or  nothing,  but 
that  he  and  I  were  two  good  fellows,  well  met,  and  that 
between  us  we  knew  lots.'  " 

"Uncle  Joe"  Cannon  has  often  told  of  his  first  meet- 
ing with  Lincoln  in  May,  1860,  when  the  latter  was  be- 
ing prominently  mentioned  for  the  presidency  by  his 
fellow  Republicans  of  Illinois.  The  meeting  occurred 
in  the  railroad  station  at  Decatur,  where  Lincoln  had 
gone  to  send  a  telegram.  Cannon  at  that  time  was  liv- 
ing in  Tuscola,  and  along  with  other  young  Repub- 


Courtesy, 


Meserve 


EARLY    PORTRAITS    OF    LINCOLN 

1.   Lincoln  in   1849;   one  of  his  earliest  portraits.   2.   Lincoln  at  the 
time  of  his  nomination  for  President. 


TRAVELS  DURING  THE  FIFTIES      159 

licans  had  been  driven  across  country  to  attend  the 
Republican  State  Convention  which  was  to  convene  the 
following  day  for  the  purpose  of  electing  delegates  to 
the  National  Convention  to  be  held  in  Chicago. 

"When  we  drove  into  Decatur  and  through  the  main 
street,  one  of  our  party,  a  man  by  the  name  of  Van- 
deron,  said,  'There's  Abe !'  and  called  out  to  a  tall  man 
on  the  sidewalk,  'Howdy,  Abe!'  to  which  Mr.  Lincoln 
responded,  with  like  familiarity,  'Howdy,  Arch!' 

"A  little  later  somebody  wanted  to  send  a  telegram. 
We  went  down  to  the  railroad  station  and  there  saw 
Lincoln  writing  a  telegram.  Mr.  Vanderon  expressed 
surprise  at  seeing  him,  and  asked  if  he  had  come  to  the 
convention,  being  a  candidate  for  president. 

"Lincoln  looked  at  his  questioner  for  a  moment,  and 
then  with  a  drawl,  replied:  'I'm  'most  too  much  of  a 
candidate  to  be  here,  and  not  enough  of  one  to  stay 
away.' " 


CHAPTER   XVI 

ANOTHER  TRIP  EAST— AND  ITS  RESULTS 

While  Lincoln's  debates  with  Douglas  had  resulted 
in  an  apparent  victory  for  the  latter,  the  real  ver- 
dict was  to  come  only  a  few  months  later  in  Lincoln's 
nomination  for  the  presidency.  A  contributing  factor 
to  this  was  his  important  trip  East  in  the  spring  of 
1860,  mention  of  which  has  already  been  made  in  an- 
other chapter. 

Lincoln's  first  objective  point  was  New  York,  and  he 
went  direct  from  Springfield  to  Chicago,  thence  over 
the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  or  its  connecting  lines,  to 
Philadelphia,  and  thence  to  Jersey  City  where  he  took 
the  ferry  for  New  York.  It  was  a  journey  which  re- 
quired a  week  or  more,  and  as  the  sleeping-car  was  still 
an  untried  quantity,  the  jaded  traveler  had  the  choice  of 
curling  up  on  the  short  coach  seats — a  hard  job  for  the 
lanky  Lincoln — or  stopping  off  at  taverns  overnight. 

The  problem  of  eating  on  long  journeys  was  also 
yet  unsolved.  No  meals  were,  of  course,  served  on  the 
train.  Many  passengers  carried  their  own  baskets  of 
food,  which  served  them  for  several  days,  while  others 
stopped  off  at  the  railway  eating-houses  or  any  other 
convenient  inns,  and  gobbled  their  food,  while  watching 
the  conductor  out  of  one  eye. 

Born  of  the  debates  with  the  Little  Giant,  consider- 
able curiosity  had  developed  in  the  East  as  to  what 
manner  of  man  this  Lincoln  was.  The  common  report 

160 


ANOTHER  TRIP  EAST  161 

was  that  he  was  awkward  and  uncouth,  and  that  his 
principal  hold  upon  his  audience  was  because  of  his 
jokes.  A  hall  had  been  provided  for  his  first  address  in 
Brooklyn,  but  such  was  the  public  interest  that  the 
meeting  was  transferred  to  New  York,  where  a  larger 
auditorium — and  one  of  the  largest  then  available — 
at  Cooper  Union  was  secured. 

Lincoln's  hearers  included  such  notables  as  Horace 
Greeley,  of  the  New  York  Tribune;  William  Cullen 
Bryant,  of  the  Post;  and  George  William  Curtis,  of 
Harper's  Magazine.  His  audience,  while  friendly,  was 
extremely  critical.  They  expected  to  be  amused,  at  any 
rate.  What  they  heard  was  a  ringing  challenge  to  all 
enemies  of  the  Union,  so  lofty  in  its  logic,  so  fiery  in 
its  native  eloquence,  as  to  leave  them  spellbound.  Gree- 
ley said  that  it  was  one  of  the  finest  examples  of  sus- 
tained oratory  he  had  ever  heard,  or  ever  expected  to 
hear. 

The  next  morning's  papers  appeared  with  large  pic- 
tures of  the  man  whose  homely  features,  until  then 
unfamiliar,  were  destined  to  be  the  best  known  and 
loved  and  hated,  during  the  ensuing  stormy  years,  of 
any  living  American.  He  had  stepped  off  the  Jersey 
City  ferry  as  only  one  of  many  incoming  strangers 
and  chiefly  remarkable  for  his  stature.  He  left  the  city 
a  marked  man.  "There  goes  Lincoln!"  said  the  cab- 
driver  and  the  newsboy,  who  had  seen  his  picture,  if 
they  had  not  read  his  speech. 

From  New  York  he  proceeded  on  into  New  England, 
speaking  in  several  cities.  It  was  not  his  first  visit  there, 
on  a  political  mission,  as  it  will  be  recalled  that,  while 
a  Congressman,  in  1848,  he  had  spoken  in  Boston, 


162      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Worcester,  and  other  cities.  Few,  however,  probably  re- 
called the  obscure  legislator  of  twelve  years  before.  As 
for  his  route,  it  was  practically  the  same  as  that  out- 
lined in  an  earlier  chapter  describing  this  pilgrimage. 
But  the  railroads — like  Lincoln  himself — had  under- 
gone rapid  changes  in  the  intervening  time.  They  had 
passed  through  the  formative  period. 

The  roads  were  being  linked  up  into  connected  sys- 
tems, passengers  now  being  conveyed  for  considerable 
distances  without  change  of  cars.  The  coaches  of  these 
Eastern  roads  were  far  better  than  those  still  in  use  in 
the  West.  The  running  time  was  nearly  twice  as  fast, 
due  to  heavier  rails  and  locomotives.  Lincoln  doubtless 
noticed  the  great  improvement  in  the  service,  over  his 
former  visit. 

Lincoln  returned  home  by  way  of  Chicago,  reaching 
there  in  time  to  attend  the  state  convention  of  the  Re- 
publican Party,  held  in  Decatur.  It  was  here  that  he 
first  got  the  nickname  of  "Rail-splitter" — because  of  a 
little  homely  trick  introduced  by  his  friends.  Two  men 
came  marching  down  the  aisle  carrying  a  couple  of 
fence  rails  on  their  shoulders,  with  a  placard  stating 
that  Abe  Lincoln  had  split  them  and  three  thousand 
more.  It  was  a  bit  of  stage  play  similar  to  many  which 
have  since  been  used,  but  far  more  successful  than  most. 
It  sent  a  wave  of  enthusiasm  through  the  convention, 
and  their  delegates  were  instructed  to  vote  for  Lincoln 
as  the  state's  favorite  son,  at  the  forthcoming  national 
convention,  in  Chicago. 

The  scenes  in  the  latter  conclave  have  been  often 
described — how  the  "Rail-splitter"  was  nominated  for 
President  amid  the  wildest  demonstrations.  With  all 


ANOTHER  TRIP  EAST  163 

this  and  the  tumultuous  campaign  which  followed,  the 
present  chronicle  has  little  to  do — for  the  good  and  suf- 
ficient reason  that  the  candidate  was  not  a  traveler.  He 
used  the  railroads  not  at  all.  He  stayed  quietly  at  home 
and  let  delegations  visit  him.  But  the  Springfield  ticket 
office  did  a  land-office  business  in  the  summer  and  fall 
of  1860. 

Lincoln's  ancient  rival,  Douglas,  had  been  nominated 
by  the  Democratic  Party — at  least,  by  one  wing  of  it, 
as  there  were  four  candidates  in  the  field, — and  he  trav- 
eled energetically,  and  continuously.  If  we  should  trace 
his  itinerary,  it  would  probably  take  in  all  the  leading 
railway  lines  in  the  Middle  West  and  South.  In  the 
election  which  followed,  Douglas  was  second,  having 
received  nearly  1,300,000  votes,  as  against  1,850,000 
for  Lincoln. 

From  that  November  election  day  until  the  follow- 
ing February,  when  he  started  East  to  take  up  the 
heavy  burden  of  his  high  office,  all  the  lines  leading  into 
Illinois  did  a  big  passenger  traffic  business.  Lincoln's 
own  home  was  constantly  besieged  by  importunate 
office-hunters,  favor-seekers,  or  politicians  advising  this, 
that,  or  the  other. 

It  was  but  a  foretaste  of  the  stress  and  strain  of 
public  life.  But  before  he  took  the  final  plunge  he 
turned  aside  to  one  pilgrimage  which  had  no  political 
significance. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

LINCOLN'S  LAST  VISIT  TO  HIS  FOSTER- 
MOTHER 

As  the  time  drew  near  for  the  President-elect  to  leave 
his  Illinois  home  for  the  national  capital,  his  thoughts 
went  back  to  his  relatives  living  in  Coles  County,  and 
more  particularly  to  his  old  stepmother,  then  living  at 
Farmington  with  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Moore.  His  father 
had  been  dead  ten  years.  He  never  lived  to  witness  his 
son's  larger  fame.  Lincoln  determined  to  pay  his  mother 
a  last  visit  before  his  departure,  as  a  strong  bond  of 
affection  had  always  existed  between  the  two.  Farming- 
ton  itself  could  not  be  reached  by  rail,  the  nearest  sta- 
tion being  Charleston,  on  the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton 
Railroad. 

An  old  circuit-riding  friend  and  law  associate,  Henry 
C.  Whitney,  whose  name  has  appeared  in  these  pages, 
relates  that  calling  at  Lincoln's  home  early  one  morn- 
ing in  the  beginning  of  February,  1861,  he  was  in- 
formed that  Lincoln  had  gone  to  keep  a  political  ap- 
pointment at  the  Chenery  House  with  a  future  Cabinet 
officer  of  his,  Judge  Edward  Bates.  He  was,  however, 
expected  home  soon,  as  he  had  not  yet  breakfasted,  and 
intended  leaving  that  morning  for  Charleston  to  bid 
his  stepmother  good-by. 

While  awaiting  Lincoln's  return,  Whitney  picked 
up  a  book  to  read,  and  did  not  hear  his  friend  come  in 
until  he  stood  before  him.  Whitney  stated  his  errand, 

164 


LAST  VISIT  TO  FOSTER-MOTHER     165 

and  Lincoln  asked  him  if  he  would  not  accompany  him 
to  Charleston,  to  talk  over  matters  on  the  train.  But 
as  Whitney  had  other  engagements  to  attend  to,  this 
did  not  entirely  suit  him.  In  view  of  the  circumstances, 
however,  he  agreed  to  ride  part  way. 

Hastily  eating  his  breakfast,  Lincoln  presently  an- 
nounced that  he  was  ready  for  the  journey. 

In  order  to  get  to  Charleston  at  that  time  it  was 
necessary  to  traverse  three  different  roads,  all  of  which 
Lincoln  had  had  dealings  with,  as  an  attorney.  The 
Great  Western,  now  a  part  of  the  Wabash,  carried  him 
as  far  as  Tolono,  where  a  change  to  the  Illinois  Central 
was  necessary.  This  road  would  carry  him  to  Mattoon, 
whence  the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton  would  be  used  to 
Charleston.  This  latter  road  is  now  a  part  of  the  Cleve- 
land, Cincinnati,  Chicago  and  St.  Louis  Railway,  pop- 
ularly known  as  the  "Big  Four." 

Whitney  gives  a  picturesque  description  of  the  ap- 
pearance of  his  distinguished  fellow-traveler,  that  morn- 
ing. 

"The  nation  at  large,"  he  said,  "would  have  been 
extremely  surprised  to  behold  their  President-elect  at 
this  time.  He  had  on  a  faded  hat,  innocent  of  a  nap; 
and  his  coat  was  extremely  short,  more  like  a  sailor's 
pea-jacket  than  any  other  describable  garment.  It  was 
the  same  outer  garment  that  he  wore  from  Harrisburg 
to  Washington,  when  he  went  to  be  inaugurated.  A 
well-worn  carpet-bag,  quite  collapsed,  comprised  his 
baggage.  After  we  had  started  for  the  depot,  across 
lots,  his  servant  came  running  after  us  and  took  the 
carpet-bag,  but  he  was  soon  sent  back  after  some  for- 
gotten thing,  and  we  trudged  on  alone." 


166      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Lincoln  mentioned  to  Whitney  that  he  was  not  de- 
cided as  to  what  he  should  do  with  his  house  while  he 
was  gone.  There  were  objections  to  both  selling  and 
renting. 

Then  he  switched  on  to  politics,  discussing  a  former 
United  States  Senator  from  Indiana,  Judge  Pettit, 
who  had  been  to  see  him  the  night  before  to  boost  him- 
self for  a  Federal  appointment.  The  Judge,  he  said, 
was  going  east  on  the  same  train  with  them. 

Nearing  the  station,  Lincoln  remarked  that  as  his 
"hat"  wasn't  "chalked"  on  this  particular  road  any 
more,  he  "reckoned"  he  would  have  to  purchase  a  ticket. 
But  Whitney  thought  that  could  be  fixed  satisfactorily. 

"I  ridiculed  him,"  narrates  Whitney,  "and  handing 
him  the  attenuated  carpet-bag,  I  went  into  Mr.  Bowen's 
office,  who  was  superintendent  of  the  road,  and  asked 
for  a  pass  for  Mr.  Lincoln.  Mr.  Bowen  was  entirely 
alone — not  even  a  clerk  being  present,  it  being  break- 
fast time  for  them — and,  as  he  commenced  to  write  a 
pass,  he  suggested  that  I  invite  Lincoln  in  there  to 
wait,  the  train  not  yet  having  come  in  from  the  west. 
Repairing  to  the  waiting-room,  I  found  the  President- 
elect surrounded  by  the  few  persons  who  were  also 
waiting  for  the  train,  tying  the  handles  of  his  carpet- 
bag, with  a  string." 

Lincoln  accompanied  Whitney  into  the  Superintend- 
ent's office. 

"Bowen,"  he  asked,  when  he  was  comfortably  seated, 
"how  is  business  on  your  road  now?" 

"Pretty  good,  just  now,"  replied  the  Superintendent. 

"You  are  a  heap  better  off,"  Lincoln  then  went  on, 


LAST  VISIT  TO  FOSTER-MOTHER    167 

"running  a  good  road,  than  I  am  playing  President. 
When  I  first  knew  Whitney,  I  was  getting  on  well — 
I  was  clean  out  of  politics  and  contented  to  stay  so; 
I  had  a  good  business,  and  my  children  were  coming  up, 
and  were  interesting  to  me,  but  now,  here  I  am " 

But  whatever  his  reactions  were  at  the  moment,  he 
abruptly  stopped,  and  led  the  conversation  into  other 
channels. 

Just  then  the  train  came  along,  and  Lincoln  and  his 
companion  left  the  Superintendent's  office.  On  board 
they  were  joined  by  Judge  Pettit  and  Thomas  Mar- 
shall, State  Senator  from  Coles  County,  who  was  going 
to  his  home  in  Charleston. 

The  morning  express  left  Springfield  at  about  a 
quarter  to  ten,  and  its  rate  of  speed  may  be  judged 
from  the  fact  that  it  was  not  due  to  arrive  at  Tolono 
until  about  half  past  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  re- 
quiring almost  four  hours  to  cover  the  seventy-five 
miles  between  those  two  points. 

Whitney  states  that  during  the  five  minute  wait  of 
the  Great  Western  express  at  Springfield,  Lincoln  had 
time  to  tell  a  story  or  two,  while  the  passengers  gath- 
ered around  for  a  look  at  the  man  who  had  now  arisen 
to  national  prominence. 

One  other  incident  is  related  by  Whitney  which, 
although  small  in  itself,  throws  a  flood  of  light  on  the 
great  heart  of  our  "First  American." 

"I  recollect  in  particular,"  he  says,  "that  Lincoln 
took  pains,  though  not  with  ostentation,  to  secure  an 
humble  old  lady,  whom  he  knew,  a  double  seat." 

As  the  train  sped  on,  Lincoln  and  Whitney  attended 


168      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

to  the  business  on  hand,  and  at  the  first  convenient  op- 
portunity the  latter  left  the  eastbound  train  and  re- 
turned to  Springfield. 

Tolono  was  reached  in  due  time,  and  the  change  of 
cars  made  to  the  Illinois  Central.  Mattoon,  the  next 
junction,  being  about  thirty-five  miles  away  to  the 
south,  the  greater  part  of  two  hours  more  would  be 
consumed  while  traversing  this  distance. 

At  Tuscola,  the  rising  young  lawyer,  Joseph  G.  Can- 
non who  resided  there,  boarded  the  train,  bound  for 
Mattoon,  where  he  was  to  try  a  lawsuit.  This  was  the 
second  meeting  that  "Uncle"  Joe  Cannon,  the  later 
Speaker  of  the  House,  had  with  Lincoln.  He  saw 
Lincoln  seated  with  Senator  Marshall,  and  the  latter 
beckoned  to  the  new  passenger,  who  was  a  constitu- 
ent of  his. 

"Mr.  Lincoln,"  Marshall  said,  not  knowing  that  the 
two  had  met  before,  "I  want  to  introduce  you  to  a 
young  lawyer  in  this  county." 

After  a  moment  or  two  of  conversation,  Cannon  re- 
lates that  he  stepped  back,  as  there  were  a  good  many 
other  people  in  the  car  crowding  around  Lincoln,  many 
of  them  desiring  an  introduction. 

"He  was,"  says  Cannon,  in  speaking  of  the  journey, 
"of  course,  the  most  distinguished  man  on  the  train, 
and  he  was  constantly  surrounded  by  the  other  passen- 
gers. But  he  was  just  one  of  the  passengers  in  the  day 
coach,  in  all  his  bearings." 

Cannon  also  states  that  Lincoln  himself  did  not  do 
much  talking,  but  in  response  to  a  query  from  a  man 
by  the  name  of  Morgan  who  appeared  to  know  him 
well,  asking  if  he  was  going  to  see  his  mother,  replied: 


LAST  VISIT  TO  FOSTER-MOTHER     169 

"I  am  going  down  to  spend  a  day  visiting  her  be- 
fore I  go  to  Washington  to  take  the  oath  of  office." 

Arriving  at  Mattoon,  Lincoln  and  the  other  passen- 
gers whose  destinations  lay  on  the  connecting  line, 
learned  that  their  train  had  arrived  too  late  to  make 
the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton  connection. 

Although  Charleston  was  but  ten  miles  away,  there 
was  now  no  means  of  reaching  that  point  save  by  way 
of  the  eastbound  freight,  which  would  not  pass  through 
till  towards  evening. 

James  A.  Connolly,  a  practicing  lawyer  at  Charles- 
ton, tells  how  he  and  other  Charlestonians  repaired  to 
the  railroad  station  to  get  a  glimpse  of  the  newly- 
elected  President.  Upon  the  arrival  of  the  regular  pas- 
senger train,  they  were  disappointed  to  learn  that  the 
Illinois  Central  passengers  had  failed  to  make  the 
connection,  and  would  come  over  later  in  the  caboose 
of  the  evening  freight. 

"We  waited  a  long  while,"  related  Mr.  Connolly 
many  years  later,  "and  when  the  train  finally  drew  in 
and  stopped,  the  locomotive  was  about  opposite  the 
station,  and  the  caboose,  or  car  which  carried  the  pas- 
sengers, was  some  distance  down  the  track. 

"Presently,  looking  in  that  direction,  we  saw  a  tall 
man  wearing  a  coat  or  shawl,  descend  from  the  steps 
of  the  car  and  patiently  make  his  way  through  the  long 
expanse  of  slush  and  ice  beside  the  track  as  far  as  the 
station  platform.  I  think  he  wore  a  plug  hat.  I  remem- 
ber I  was  surprised  that  a  railroad  company,  with  so 
distinguished  a  passenger  aboard  its  train  as  the 
President-elect  of  the  United  States,  did  not  manifest 
interest  enough  in  his  dignity  and  comfort  to  deliver 


170      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

him  at  the  station  instead  of  dropping  him  off  in  the 
mud  several  hundred  feet  down  the  track. 

"In  addition  to  myself,  quite  a  crowd  of  natives  were 
gathered  on  the  platform  to  see  him.  I  confess  I  was 
not  favorably  impressed.  His  awkward,  if  not  ungainly 
figure,  and  his  appearance  generally  failed  to  attract 
me,  but  this  was  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  I  was  a 
great  admirer  of  Douglas,  whose  cause  I  had  earnestly 
supported. 

"There  were  no  formalities.  Mr.  Lincoln  shook  hands 
with  a  number  of  persons,  whom  he  recognized  or  who 
greeted  him,  and  in  a  few  minutes  left  for  the  residence 
of  a  friend,  where,  it  was  understood,  he  was  to  spend 
the  night." 

Lincoln  was  entertained  at  Charleston  at  the  home  of 
Colonel  A.  H.  Chapman,  who  had  married  a  daughter 
of  Dennis  Hanks,  Lincoln's  cousin  and  a  playmate  in 
the  days  when  they  were  boys  together. 

Connolly  had  another  glimpse  of  the  distinguished 
visitor,  that  evening,  when  with  many  others — some 
old  acquaintances — they  thronged  at  the  Chapman 
home.  The  further  impression  that  Connolly  carried 
away  with  him  was  that  Lincoln  was  a  "marvel — a 
charming  story-teller  and  in  other  respects  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  men"  to  whom  he  had  ever  listened. 

Early  the  next  morning,  Lincoln  and  Chapman  got 
into  a  two-horse  buggy — a  familiar  rig  in  those  days 
and  for  many  years  thereafter — and  drove  over  to 
Farmington,  the  last  home  of  Sarah  Bush  Lincoln. 

It  would  require  the  brush  of  a  great  artist  to  de- 
pict this  meeting  between  the  tall  man  who  leaped 
eagerly  over  the  dash  of  the  buggy  and  the  frail  little 


LAST  VISIT  TO  FOSTER-MOTHER     171 

woman  who  extended  her  arms  to  him  at  the  door.  He 
was  not  a  President-to-be ;  he  was  her  boy,  Abe,  again. 
And  as  he  looked  into  her  faded  eyes,  he  must  have 
glimpsed  again  those  early  days  of  hardship  when  they 
dug  a  scant  living  out  of  the  forest  with  their  bare 
hands. 

Long  they  sat  and  talked — foster-mother  and  son — 
recalling  scenes  now  grave  now  gay.  It  was  as  though 
Abraham  Lincoln  were  summoning  up  his  boyhood 
again,  to  bid  it  an  eternal  farewell. 

He  lingered  in  this  quiet  village  for  a  day  or  two, 
taking  short  trips  with  Chapman  through  the  sur- 
rounding country,  and  when  he  started  back  for 
Charleston,  his  stepmother  accompanied  them.  Here, 
the  next  day,  their  paths  diverged — not  again  to  come 
together. 

As  she  embraced  him  in  a  last  farewell  she  must 
have  had  a  presentiment  of  this.  Her  voice  shook  with 
emotion  as  she  said,  "God  bless  you  and  keep  you,  my 
good  son!"  And  his  own  eyes  were  wet  as  he  turned 
at  the  corner  of  the  street  to  wave  her  a  final  greeting. 


CHAPTER    XVIII 

THE  JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861 

In  these  days  of  quick  travel  and  quicker  communi- 
cation it  is  hard  to  understand  the  reason  for  the  long 
interval  between  the  election  of  a  president  to  office,  and 
his  inauguration.  The  man  chosen  by  the  people  must 
wait  from  early  November  until  early  March — four 
months — before  taking  up  his  duties.  This  provision 
of  time  had  been  made  in  the  beginning  of  the  Republic, 
long  before  the  railroad  and  the  telegraph,  when  it 
required  days  if  not  weeks  for  the  news  to  reach  every 
corner  of  the  country,  and  when  the  new  official  would 
likewise  need  ample  traveling  time.  The  news  of  Lin- 
coln's election  was  carried  to  the  Pacific  Coast  by 
Pony  Express,  as  this  was  before  the  days  of  the  trans- 
continental railroad,  with  its  attendant  lines  of  wire. 

But  even  in  Lincoln's  day  this  awkward  hiatus  be- 
tween election  and  inauguration  worked  great  hard- 
ships for  the  incoming  administration.  The  outgoing 
President,  Buchanan,  did  not  feel  justified  in  taking 
active  steps  against  the  secession  movements  of  various 
Southern  states.  He  argued  that  he  must  not  embarrass 
the  new  President.  Meanwhile,  Lincoln's  own  hands 
were  tied,  and  he  could  only  witness,  helplessly,  the 
sinister  actions  which  spelled  disruption  of  the  Union. 

Lincoln  allowed  three  weeks  for  his  journey  from 
Springfield  to  Washington,  but  this  was  partly  on  ac- 

172 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     173 

count  of  scheduled  stops  for  receptions  and  speech- 
making.  During  this  four  months'  period  of  waiting 
he  had  been  literally  showered  with  invitations  from 
state  legislatures,  cities  and  towns,  inviting  him  to  share 
their  hospitality  when  he  journeyed  to  Washington. 
Various  railroads  also  tendered  the  use  of  special  trains 
for  the  President-elect  and  his  party.  The  invitations 
from  the  legislatures  of  Indiana,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania, 
New  York,  and  New  Jersey  were  accepted,  while  that 
from  Massachusetts  was  regretfully  turned  down  on 
the  ground  of  want  of  time  to  detour  by  way  of  the 
Bay  State.  The  plan  finally  adopted  provided  for 
scheduled  stops  to  be  made  at  the  cities  of  Indianapolis, 
Cincinnati,  Columbus,  Pittsburgh,  Cleveland,  Buffalo, 
Albany,  New  York,  Trenton,  Philadelphia,  and  Harris- 
burg  for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  the  hospitality  ex- 
tended, and  arrangements  were  made  accordingly. 

The  entire  charge  of  the  transportation  and  other 
arrangements  was  put  in  the  hands  of  W.  S.  Wood, 
of  New  York,  who  had  been  recommended  by  William 
H.  Seward,  Lincoln's  Secretary  of  State  to  be,  the 
latter  in  all  probability  receiving  a  suggestion  as  to 
the  availability  of  Mr.  Wood  from  Thurlow  Weed, 
long  a  power  in  the  politics  of  New  York  State  and 
the  nation.  Under  Wood's  management  provision  was 
made  for  special  trains,  preceded  by  pilot  engines,  for 
the  entire  journey. 

Having  leased  his  residence  to  another  tenant  several 
days  before  the  scheduled  leaving  time,  Lincoln  secured 
temporary  quarters  for  himself  and  his  family  at  the 
Chenery  House,  then  the  leading  hostelry  in  Spring- 
field. Robert,  his  eldest  son,  had  arrived  from  the  East 


174*      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

where   he  was   attending   college,   to   accompany   the 
party. 

Weik  in  his  "Real  Lincoln"  quotes  from  a  contempo- 
rary local  newspaper  account  of  Abraham  Lincoln's 
last  morning  at  the  hotel,  which  gives  us  another  illumi- 
nating glimpse  of  the  homely  simplicity  of  the  man 
who  was  leaving  to  assume  the  reins  of  government. 
"The  complete  absence  of  ostentation  and  his  physical 
self-reliance,"  says  this  writer,  "was  illustrated  on  the 
morning  of  his  departure,  when  in  the  hotel  office  he 
roped  his  trunks  with  his  own  hands,  took  some  of  the 
hotel  cards,  on  the  back  of  which  he  wrote: 

A.  Lincoln 

White  House 

Washington,  D.  C. 

and  tacked  them  on  the  trunks,  supplementing  the 
act  by  writing  his  autograph  on  another  card  and  giv- 
ing it  to  the  landlord's  daughter.  In  due  time  the  omni- 
bus backed  up  in  front  of  the  hotel  and  he  left  for  the 
depot." 

Can  we  imagine  any  official  in  this  day  and  time — 
even  the  mayor  of  a  city — stopping  to  label  his  own 
trunks  ? 

February  11  was  the  date  scheduled  for  departure 
on  this  momentous  journey.  The  presidential  train  left 
Springfield  from  the  station  of  the  Great  Western 
Railroad.  It  is  interesting  to  note  in  passing  that  part 
of  this  original  structure  is  still  standing,  used  as  a 
freight  depot  by  the  Wabash  Railroad,  successor  to 
the  Great  Western. 


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JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     175 

Although  the  morning  was  dark  and  gloomy  and  the 
air  chilly,  a  crowd  of  several  hundred  of  his  neighbors 
gathered  early  at  the  little  station  to  bid  good-by  and 
God-speed  to  their  fellow-townsman.  From  the  time 
Lincoln  arrived  there  until  almost  the  time  of  depar- 
ture, his  friends  filed  by  him  in  the  waiting  room  in  a 
steady  stream,  shaking  him  by  the  hand,  speaking  a 
few  words  and  otherwise  demonstrating  the  affection  in 
which  he  was  held.  Some  were  so  overcome  by  their 
emotions  that  they  merely  pressed  his  hand  silently. 

At  five  minutes  of  eight,  Lincoln,  preceded  by  Wood, 
left  the  station  and  passed  slowly  through  the  crowd 
to  his  special  car  on  the  rear  of  the  train.  As  he  gained 
the  rear  platform  of  the  coach  he  paused,  and  facing 
the  people,  removed  his  hat.  Although  he  had  told  the 
newspaper  men  the  day  before  that  nothing  of  a  nature 
warranting  their  attendance  would  transpire  at  the  sta- 
tion that  morning,  yet  as  he  looked  upon  the  expectant 
faces  raised  towards  his,  he  felt  that  he  must  say  some- 
thing, and  mastering  his  emotions,  raised  his  hand. 

The  train  was  ready  to  start,  the  bell  had  rung,  and 
the  conductor  had  reached  up  to  pull  the  bell-rope, 
when  Lincoln  began  to  speak. 

"My  friends,"  he  said,  "no  one,  not  in  my  situation, 
can  appreciate  my  feelings  of  sadness  at  this  parting. 
To  this  place,  and  the  kindness  of  these  people,  I  owe 
everything.  Here  I  have  lived  a  quarter  of  a  century, 
and  have  passed  from  a  young  to  an  old  man.  Here 
my  children  have  been  born,  and  one  is  buried.  I  now 
leave,  not  knowing  when  or  whether  ever  I  may  return, 
with  a  task  before  me  greater  than  that  which  rested 
upon  Washington.  Without  the  assistance  of  that  Di- 


176      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

vine  Being  who  ever  attended  him,  I  cannot  succeed. 
With  that  assistance,  I  cannot  fail.  Trusting  in  Him, 
who  can  go  with  me,  and  remain  with  you,  and  be  every- 
where for  good,  let  us  confidently  hope  that  all  will 
yet  be  well.  To  His  care  commending  you,  as  I  hope 
in  your  prayers  you  will  commend  me,  I  bid  you  an  af- 
fectionate farewell." 

During  the  delivery  of  this  short  address,  the  rain 
was  falling  fast ;  and  yet  the  assemblage,  imitating  the 
speaker,  stood  with  bared  heads,  scarcely  noting  the 
falling  drops. 

As  he  stopped  speaking,  the  train  moved  slowly  away, 
and  Abraham  Lincoln,  standing  in  the  doorway  of  the 
coach,  took  his  last  look  as  a  private  citizen  at  Spring- 
field. What  must  have  been  his  thoughts  as  he  was 
borne  away  towards  a  "task  greater  than  that  which 
rested  upon  Washington"? 

His  friend  and  law  associate,  Isaac  N.  Arnold,  once 
told  an  aristocratic  assemblage  of  Englanders :  "I  know 
of  nothing  in  history  more  pathetic  than  the  scene 
when  he  (Lincoln)  bade  good-by  to  his  old  friends  and 
neighbors." 

What  his  neighbors  thought  of  this  leave-taking  has 
been  most  ably  described  in  the  contemporary  issue  of 
the  Springfield  Journal,  by  the  editor,  Edward  L. 
Baker,  who  says : 

"It  was  a  most  impressive  scene.  We  have  known  Mr. 
Lincoln  for  many  years ;  we  have  heard  him  speak  upon 
a  hundred  different  occasions ;  but  we  never  saw  him  so 
profoundly  affected,  nor  did  he  ever  utter  an  address 
which  seemed  to  us  so  full  of  simple  and  touching  elo- 
quence, so  exactly  adapted  to  the  occasion,  so  worthy  of 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     177 

the  man  and  the  hour.  Although  it  was  raining  fast 
when  he  began  to  speak,  every  hat  was  lifted  and  every 
head  bent  forward  to  catch  the  last  words  of  the  depart- 
ing chief.  When  he  said,  with  the  earnestness  of  a  sud- 
den inspiration  of  feeling,  that  with  God's  help  he 
should  not  fail,  there  was  an  uncontrollable  burst  of  ap- 
plause. At  precisely  eight  o'clock  city  time  the  train 
moved  off  bearing  our  honored  townsman,  our  noble 
chief,  Abraham  Lincoln,  to  the  scenes  of  his  future 
labors  and,  as  we  firmly  believe,  of  his  glorious  triumph. 
God  bless  honest  Abraham  Lincoln !" 

The  train  bearing  the  party  from  Springfield  con- 
sisted of  an  engine,  baggage-car,  and  passenger  coach. 
This  equipment  was  the  property  of  the  Great  Western 
Railroad,  which  was  to  carry  them  to  the  Indiana- 
Illinois  state  line  where  the  Tolono  and  Wabash  Rail- 
way would  then  take  charge  of  the  party  as  far  as 
Lafayette,  Indiana.  This  route  from  Springfield  to 
Lafayette  is  now  operated  as  part  of  the  main  line  of 
the  present  Wabash  system  from  Toledo  to  St.  Louis, 
acquired  later  through  various  consolidations. 

The  presidential  party  aboard  the  train  consisted  of 
the  following  persons:  Robert  T.  Lincoln,  his  eldest 
son;  Dr.  W.  S.  Wallace,  a  brother-in-law;  Lockwood 
Todd,  a  relative  of  Mrs.  Lincoln ;  John  G.  Nicolay  and 
John  Hay,  private  secretaries ;  Colonel  Elmer  E.  Ells- 
worth, a  former  law  student  of  Lincoln's  and  later  to 
be  one  of  the  first  martyrs  to  the  cause;  Judge  David 
Davis,  life-long  friend  afterwards  appointed  to  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court;  Major  David  Hunter, 
Captain  John  Pope,  and  Captain  George  W.  Hazard, 
of  the  United  States  Army ;  J.  M.  Burgess,  George  C. 


178      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Latham,  B.  Forbes,  and  last  but  not  least,  W.  S.  Wood, 
the  managerial  master  of  ceremonies. 

Mrs.  Lincoln  and  the  two  younger  sons,  William 
and  Thomas,  did  not  accompany  the  special  from 
Springfield,  but  joined  the  party  the  following  morn- 
ing in  Indianapolis. 

Col.  E.  V.  Sumner,  also  of  the  United  States  Army, 
who  was  to  have  reported  at  Springfield,  did  not  con- 
nect with  the  special  until  at  Indianapolis.  From  this 
point,  these  four  personages  remained  with  the  others 
until  their  destination  was  reached. 

The  train  leaving  Springfield  also  had  on  board,  in 
addition  to  the  presidential  party,  Lincoln's  polit- 
ical manager,  Norman  B.  Judd,  later  to  receive  a  for- 
eign post,  who  left  the  party  at  Harrisburg;  Henry 
Villard,  the  correspondent,  who  "sickened"  at  New 
York ;  Ward  Hill  Lamon,  Lincoln's  traveling  compan- 
ion on  his  secret  midnight  ride  from  Harrisburg  to 
Washington  by  way  of  Philadelphia,  which  we  will  de- 
scribe later;  Orville  H.  Browning,  Senator-elect;  Gov- 
ernor Richard  Yates,  Ex-Governor  John  Moore,  Jesse 
K.  Dubois,  O.  M.  Hatch,  Ebenezer  Peck,  Robert  Irwin, 
Josiah  Allen,  and  Edward  L.  Baker,  editor  of  the 
Springfield  Journal.  Most  of  these  accompanied  Lin- 
coln only  as  far  as  Indianapolis.  Newton  Bateman, 
State  Superintendent  of  Schools,  who  had  been  among 
those  of  Lincoln's  friends  favored  with  a  special  in- 
vitation to  go  that  far,  was  not  present,  declining  on 
the  ground  of  pressing  official  duties. 

After  the  train  had  left  Springfield  behind,  the  news- 
paper correspondents  on  board  surrounded  Abraham 
Lincoln,  requesting  him  to  furnish  them  with  a  copy  of 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     179 

the  little  speech  he  had  made.  They  reminded  him  that 
as  he  had  intimated  the  day  before  there  would  be  no 
speech-making,  they  were  not  in  readiness  to  take  down 
his  remarks. 

Lincoln  replied  that  his  remarks  were  impromptu, 
and  he  had  no  manuscript  copy,  but  that  he  would  write 
them  out  in  full  as  he  recalled  them. 

He  asked  Nicolay  to  bring  him  paper  and  pencil, 
and  sat  down  to  collect  his  thoughts.  He  wrote  a  few 
lines,  and  then  handed  the  paper  to  Nicolay,  asking 
him  to  write  as  he  dictated.  But  this  method  did  not 
proceed  very  far  before  he  had  the  paper  returned  to 
him.  Penciling  a  few  more  lines  he  again  turned  the 
sheet  over  to  his  secretary  and  dictated  the  remainder 
of  the  address,  copies  of  which  were  given  the  news- 
paper men. 

Thomas  Ross,  who  acted  as  brakeman  on  the  train 
as  far  as  the  state  line,  has  given  his  lurid  recollections 
of  the  journey  across  Lincoln's  home  state,  as  follows: 

"The  enthusiasm  all  along  the  line  was  intense. 
As  we  whirled  through  the  country  villages,  we  caught 
a  cheer  from  the  people  and  a  glimpse  of  waving  hand- 
kerchiefs and  of  hats  tossed  high  into  the  air.  Wher- 
ever we  stopped  there  was  a  great  rush  to  shake  hands 
with  Mr.  Lincoln,  though  of  course  only  a  few  could 
reach  him.  The  crowds  looked  as  if  they  included  the 
whole  population.  There  were  women  and  children, 
there  were  young  men,  and  there  were  old  men  with 
gray  beards.  It  was  soul-stirring  to  see  these  white- 
whiskered  old  fellows,  many  of  whom  had  known  Lin- 
coln in  his  humbler  days,  join  in  the  cheering,  and  hear 
them  shout  after  him,  'Good-by,  Abe.   Stick  to  the 


180      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Constitution,  and  we  will  stick  to  you !'  It  was  my  good 
fortune  to  stand  beside  Lincoln  at  each  place  at  which 
he  spoke — at  Decatur,  Tolono,  and  Danville.  At  the 
state  line  the  train  stopped  for  dinner.  There  was  such 
a  crowd  that  Lincoln  could  scarcely  reach  the  dining- 
room. 

"  'Gentlemen,'  said  he,  as  he  surveyed  the  crowd,  'if 
you  will  make  me  a  little  path,  so  that  I  can  get  through 
and  get  something  to  eat,  I  will  make  you  a  speech  when 
I  get  back.' 

"I  never  knew  where  all  the  people  came  from.  They 
were  not  only  in  the  towns  and  villages,  but  many 
were  along  the  track  in  the  country,  just  to  get  a 
glimpse  of  the  President's  train.  I  remember  that,  after 
passing  Bement,  we  crossed  a  trestle,  and  I  was  greatly 
interested  to  see  a  man  standing  there  with  a  shot- 
gun. As  the  train  passed  he  presented  arms.  I  have 
often  thought  he  was  there,  a  volunteer,  to  see  that  the 
President's  train  got  over  it  in  safety. 

"As  I  have  said,  the  people  everywhere  were  wild. 
Everybody  wanted  to  shake  hands  with  Lincoln,  and 
he  would  have  to  say :  'My  friends,  I  would  like  to  shake 
hands  with  all  of  you,  but  I  can't  do  it.'  At  Danville 
I  well  remember  seeing  him  thrust  his  long  arm  over 
several  heads  to  shake  hands  with  George  Lawrence. 
Walter  Whitney,  the  conductor,  who  went  on  to  Indi- 
anapolis, told  me  when  he  got  back  that,  after  Lincoln 
got  into  a  carriage,  men  got  hold  of  the  hubs  and  car- 
ried the  vehicle  for  a  whole  block.  At  the  state  line  I 
left  the  train,  and  returned  to  Springfield,  having 
passed  the  biggest  day  in  my  whole  life." 

Still  traveling  eastward,  the  party  reached  Lafayette, 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     181 

Indiana,  where  another  change  of  railroad  had  to  be 
made.  Leaving  the  tracks  of  the  Toledo  and  Wabash 
Railway  they  entered  upon  those  of  the  Lafayette  and 
Indianapolis  Railroad,  which  carried  them  to  Indian- 
apolis. This  road  now  forms  a  part  of  the  Cleveland, 
Cincinnati,  Chicago  and  St.  Louis  Railway,  one  of  the 
New  York  Central  Lines  as  at  present  constituted. 

Indianapolis  was  reached  late  in  the  afternoon  of  the 
same  day,  about  five  o'clock.  At  the  Union  Station  Lin- 
coln was  welcomed  by  a  delegation  headed  by  Governor 
Morgan,  to  whose  remarks  he  made  formal  reply. 

The  Lincoln  party  stayed  at  the  Bates  House  over 
night,  the  President-elect  addressing  the  Legislature 
the  next  morning.  Following  this  the  party  boarded 
the  special  provided  to  take  them  to  Cincinnati,  where 
the  second  scheduled  stop  was  to  be  made. 

From  Indianapolis  to  Cincinnati,  the  Indianapolis 
and  Cincinnati  Railroad  was  used,  this  corporation 
owning  the  line  as  far  as  Lawrenceburg,  and  having 
trackage  rights  from  this  point  into  Cincinnati  over 
the  roadbed  of  the  old  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad, 
now  a  part  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio. 

Leaving  Indianapolis  at  ten  o'clock,  but  few  stops 
were  made.  At  Shelbyville,  Greensburg  and  Lawrence- 
burg, where  large  crowds  had  assembled,  Lincoln  ap- 
peared and  bowed  to  the  people,  with  a  few  brief  re- 
marks. 

Late  that  afternoon  the  special  reached  Cincinnati, 
where  two  addresses  were  made,  one  directly  to  the 
Mayor  and  citizens  assembled,  and  one  to  a  procession 
of  German  Free  Workingmen  which  called  on  the 
President-elect  that  evening  at  the  Burnet  House. 


182      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

At  nine  o'clock  the  following  morning  the  party  left 
Cincinnati  over  the  Little  Miami  Railroad  for  Xenia, 
from  which  point  the  Columbus  and  Xenia  Railroad 
would  be  used  to  Columbus,  their  next  objective.  Both 
of  these  roads  are  now  incorporated  in  the  great  Penn- 
sylvania system. 

They  reached  Columbus  at  two  o'clock  that  after- 
noon, after  having  encountered  the  usual  throngs  gath- 
ered along  the  route.  Shortly  after  arrival,  Lincoln 
addressed  the  State  Legislature,  and  in  the  evening  a 
largely  attended  reception  was  held  at  the  residence 
of  Governor  Dennison,  by  whom  he  was  entertained. 
It  was  while  in  this  city  that  Lincoln  received  the  of- 
ficial notice  of  his  election  from  Washington  in  the  form 
of  a  telegram  notifying  him  that  the  votes  had  been 
counted,  and  he  was  declared  President. 

The  delay  in  this  official  notification,  coming  weeks 
and  months  after  election  and  while  actually  on  his 
way  to  take  office,  speaks  volumes  for  the  lack  of  com- 
munication which  yet  prevailed  over  the  United  States. 

The  morning  following  the  levee  the  party  left  Co- 
lumbus at  eight  o'clock,  using  a  train  furnished  by 
the  Steubenville  and  Indiana  Railroad,  as  far  as  Steu- 
benville.  However,  from  Columbus  to  Newark  the  road 
had  trackage  rights  only  over  the  Central  Ohio  Rail- 
road. From  Steubenville  to  Rochester,  Pennsylvania, 
the  Cleveland  and  Pittsburgh  Railroad  was  used,  and 
from  the  latter  point  to  Pittsburgh,  the  Ohio  and  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad.  All  these  roads  from  Columbus  to 
Pittsburgh  are  now  operated  by,  and  a  part  of,  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  system. 

At  Cadiz  Junction  the  entire  party  was  treated  to 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861    18S 

an  elaborate  dinner,  prepared  by  Mrs.  T.  L.  Jewett, 
wife  of  the  president  of  the  Steubenville  and  Indiana 
Railroad,  over  whose  tracks  the  train  was  passing. 

At  Steubenville,  where  a  short  stop  was  made,  it 
was  found  that  the  rainfall  which  had  commenced  be- 
fore leaving  Columbus  had  ceased,  and  Lincoln  made 
a  brief  address  to  the  populace  awaiting  the  special. 
At  either  Rochester  or  the  next  station,  Freedom  by 
name,  a  delay  of  two  hours  occurred,  occasioned  by  the 
wreck  of  a  freight  train  a  short  distance  ahead. 

Allegheny  City  was  reached  late  that  evening,  about 
eight  o'clock.  Here  the  rain  was  again  coming  down  in 
torrents,  serving  to  diminish  somewhat  the  size  of  the 
crowd  assembled  to  greet  the  distinguished  guest. 

The  young  man  who  was  both  railroad  agent  and 
telegraph  operator  at  Allegheny  at  the  time,  in  later 
years  related  how  he  was  among  the  privileged  few  who 
entered  the  private  car  of  Lincoln  and  his  family,  and 
says  that  "I  shall  never  forget  the  deep  impression 
which  his  towering  form  and  his  already  sad  and  al- 
ways kindly  face  made  on  me  as  he  took  my  hand." 

Lincoln  stopped  at  the  Monongahela  House  in  Pitts- 
burgh. Here  two  addresses  were  made,  one  on  the  eve- 
ning of  his  arrival  to  the  throng  of  people  which  had 
turned  out  to  see  him,  and  one  the  next  morning  to 
the  Mayor  of  the  city  and  its  citizens. 

Following  the  latter  speech,  the  party  resumed  their 
journey,  leaving  Pittsburgh  in  a  dense  downpour  of 
rain.  The  next  objective  was  Cleveland,  Ohio.  From 
Pittsburgh  to  Alliance,  Ohio,  the  Ohio  and  Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad  was  again  made  use  of,  and  from  the 
latter  point  to  Cleveland,  the  Cleveland  and  Pittsburgh 


184      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Railroad,  both  now  a  part  of  the  Pennsylvania  system. 
Along  the  way  the  usual  concourses  of  people  were  en- 
countered, and  at  Alliance  a  dinner  was  served.  Cleve- 
land was  reached  at  four-twenty  in  the  afternoon. 

Proceeding  to  the  Weddell  House,  where  he  was  to 
stay,  Lincoln  was  formally  welcomed  to  the  city,  and 
responded  in  a  speech  addressed  to  the  chairman  of 
proceedings  and  his  fellow-citizens.  Saturday  morning 
dawned  bright  and  clear,  and  as  the  presidential  party 
was  scheduled  to  leave  at  nine  o'clock,  the  early  dawn 
found  many  people  assembled  at  the  station  for  a  last 
glimpse  of  the  President-elect. 

It  is  estimated  that  at  about  forty  stations  along 
the  route  from  Cleveland  to  Buffalo  crowds  of  people 
were  gathered.  From  Girard,  Ohio,  to  Erie,  Pennsyl- 
vania, where  the  party  dined,  Lincoln  was  accompanied 
by  Horace  Greeley.  From  Cleveland  to  Erie,  the  special 
traveled  over  the  tracks  of  the  Cleveland,  Painesville 
and  Ashtabula  Railroad ;  from  Erie  to  the  New  York- 
Pennsylvania  state  line,  those  of  the  Erie  and  North 
East  Railroad;  and  from  the  latter  point  into  Buffalo 
those  of  the  Buffalo  and  State  Line  Railroad.  The  Erie 
and  North  East  Railroad  Company  operated  the  en- 
tire trackage  of  the  last  two  lines.  All  these  roads  are 
now  a  part  of  the  New  York  Central  system. 

At  Westfield,  Chautauqua  County,  New  York,  Lin- 
coln's kindliness  was  displayed  in  an  incident  which  has 
been  told  more  than  once  by  the  little  participant,  who 
is  still  living  in  Kansas,  and  to  whom  we  are  indebted 
for  the  following  account. 

It  seems  that  during  the  presidential  campaign,  an 
eleven  year  old  girl  by  the  name  of  Grace  Bedell,  liv- 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     185 

ing  at  Westfield,  was  given  a  portrait  of  the  Repub- 
lican candidate.  Staunch  little  Republican  though  she 
was,  she  was  disappointed  in  her  hero's  looks,  and  in 
her  childish  mind  arose  the  thought  that  if  he  were  to 
raise  whiskers,  his  appearance  would  be  improved.  She 
thereupon  wrote  him  a  letter  to  this  effect,  to  which  a 
few  days  later  she  received  a  reply  from  Lincoln  him- 
self. It  was  signed  "your  sincere  well-wisher,  A.  Lin- 
coln," and  in  it,  referring  to  her  suggestion  he  said 
that  "having  never  worn  any,  do  you  not  think  people 
would  call  it  a  piece  of  silly  affectation  if  I  were  to  be- 
gin wearing  them  now?" 

However,  her  suggestion  was  to  bear  fruit.  As  the 
train  stopped  at  Westfield  for  a  few  moments,  Lincoln 
appeared  on  the  platform,  made  a  short  speech,  and 
then  said:  "I  have  a  correspondent  in  this  place,  a 
little  girl  whose  name  is  Grace  Bedell,  and  I  would  like 
to  see  her." 

Grace  was  discovered  on  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd, 
and  conveyed  to  the  President-elect,  who  stepped  down 
from  his  coach,  and  extended  his  hand.  "You  see,  I  have 
let  these  whiskers  grow  for  you,  Grace,"  he  said.  Then 
reaching  out  his  long  arms,  he  lifted  the  little  girl  up 
and  kissed  her  in  his  fatherly  way,  stepped  on  board 
the  train  and  was  gone. 

In  referring  to  this  in  the  White  House,  Lincoln 
once  remarked  to  his  marshal,  "How  small  a  thing 
will  sometimes  change  the  whole  aspect  of  our  lives." 

That  afternoon  the  party  reached  Buffalo,  where 
they  found  a  vast  throng  of  people,  headed  by  Ex- 
President  Fillmore,  and  the  party  proceeded  to  the 
American  Hotel.  The  jam  was  so  great  that  Major 


186      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Hunter  had  his  shoulder  dislocated.  Arriving  at  the 
hotel,  Lincoln  was  formally  welcomed  by  the  mayor, 
to  whose  remarks  an  appropriate  response  was  given. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  this  was  now  Saturday,  the 
16th,  and  it  had  been  decided  that  the  party  were  to 
remain  at  Buffalo  over  Sunday,  resting  quietly. 

On  Sunday  morning  Abraham  Lincoln  attended 
church  with  Mr.  Fillmore  and  later  was  dined  by  him. 

The  following  morning  the  Lincoln  party  left  Buf- 
falo at  an  early  hour,  but  the  usual  throng  was  in 
evidence.  The  train  pulled  out  from  the  station  at 
five-forty-five. 

The  next  regular  stop  was  Albany,  reached  by  the 
New  York  Central  Railroad,  but  we  observe  the  dis- 
tinguished traveler  speaking  to  assemblages  at  Roches- 
ter, Syracuse,  and  Utica  enroute,  while  many  other 
places  had  to  be  content  with  his  appearance  on  the 
car  platform  as  he  bowed  in  acknowledgment  to  the 
homage  paid  him. 

Albany  was  reached  between  two  and  three  o'clock 
that  afternoon.  Here  Lincoln  was  met  by  both  munic- 
ipal and  state  authorities  in  formal  welcome,  and  we 
find  him  that  afternoon  addressing  the  mayor  of  the 
city,  the  governor  of  the  state,  and  both  Houses  of 
the  Legislature  in  joint  assembly. 

During  his  stay  here  Lincoln  stopped  at  the  Delavan 
House,  and  at  eight  o'clock  on  the  morning  after  his 
arrival  left  for  New  York. 

At  that  time  there  was  no  railroad  bridge  crossing 
the  Hudson  River  at  Albany.  The  usual  mode  of  travel 
was  for  passengers  to  cross  by  ferry  to  the  town  of 
East  Albany.  Here  they  took  a  train  over  the  Hudson 


Courtesy,   Delaware   &    Hudson    Railroad 


Locomotive  which  hauled  Lincoln's  train  from  Albany  to  Troy 
on  its  triumphant  progress  East,  in  1861. 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     187 

River  Railroad  following  the  lordly  stream  down  to 
the  metropolis.  As  we  have  previously  stated,  this 
road,  then  a  separate  line,  is  now  a  part  of  the  Central 
system. 

The  usual  route  as  above  outlined  was  not  followed 
by  Lincoln's  party,  however,  because  of  unusually  high 
water  prevailing  at  Albany.  Arrangements  were  made 
to  detour  by  way  of  Troy. 

This  necessitated  the  passing  of  the  special  train 
over  three  different  roads  in  a  short  distance.  The  cars 
of  the  New  York  Central  used  in  traveling  from  Buf- 
falo to  Albany  were  requisitioned  for  this  purpose. 

The  train  passed  up  the  west  side  of  the  river  over 
the  tracks  of  the  Albany  and  Vermont  Railroad,  leased 
to  and  operated  by  the  Rensselaer  and  Saratoga  Rail- 
road Company,  to  Waterford  Junction.  Thence  to 
Green  Island,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  the  tracks 
of  the  Rensselaer  and  Saratoga  proper  were  used. 
From  Green  Island  to  the  east  bank  of  the  river  a  rail- 
road bridge  owned  by  the  latter  company  over  which 
the  Troy  Union  Railroad  Company  had  running 
rights  was  traversed,  the  Troy  Union  proper  operating 
within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Troy  only,  and  it  was 
over  this  latter  road  that  Abraham  Lincoln  and  party 
arrived  in  the  Union  Station  at  Troy.  These  roads  are 
now  a  part  of  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Company. 

Troy  was  reached  a  few  minutes  after  nine  o'clock, 
a  crowd  of  about  thirty  thousand  people  awaiting  the 
special.  After  a  brief  address  by  Lincoln  the  party 
boarded  the  train  of  the  Hudson  River  Railroad  await- 
ing, and  left  after  a  stop  of  thirty  minutes. 

Crowds  were  assembled  all  along  the  route  of  the 


188      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Hudson  River  road,  brief  addresses  being  made  by 
the  President-elect  at  Poughkeepsie,  Hudson,  and  Peek- 
skill. 

New  York  was  reached  about  three  o'clock  that  after- 
noon. The  reception  here  was  most  imposing  and  on  a 
large  scale,  as  befitted  the  leading  city  of  the  New 
World.  Business  houses  were  closed  generally,  flags 
displayed,  and  the  streets  seemed  overflowing  with  hu- 
manity. Lincoln  stopped  at  the  old  Astor  House,  the 
same  hotel  of  his  former  visit,  from  the  balcony  of  which 
he  was  compelled  to  address  the  cheering  crowds  wedged 
tightly  in  the  street  below. 

In  the  evening  a  more  or  less  private  reception  was 
tendered  him  by  a  delegation  of  politicians  who  had 
participated  actively  in  the  presidential  campaign, 
headed  by  E.  D.  Smith. 

The  following  morning,  Wednesday  the  20th,  the 
President-elect  was  escorted  to  City  Hall,  where  he  was 
formally  welcomed  by  Mayor  Wood,  to  whose  address  a 
fitting  response  was  given.  In  the  afternoon  Barnum's 
Museum  was  visited,  and  that  evening  the  distinguished 
guest  was  given  an  opportunity  to  gratify  another  side 
of  his  complex  nature,  when  he  attended  Verdi's  opera 
"The  Masked  Ball,"  at  the  Academy  of  Music. 

At  eight  o'clock  the  next  morning  the  Hudson  River 
was  crossed  by  ferry-boat,  and  upon  reaching  the  Jer- 
sey City  shore  a  large  throng  was  found  waiting  to 
catch  a  glimpse  of  the  man  who  was  to  rule  over  the 
destinies  of  the  nation.  After  a  few  remarks  in  reply  to 
W.  L.  Dayton  who  had  welcomed  him  to  the  state  of 
New  Jersey,  Lincoln  and  his  party  boarded  the  train 
provided  for  them. 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     189 

Philadelphia,  the  next  objective,  although  only 
ninety  miles  away,  required  the  use  of  three  roads,  all 
now  a  part  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  system.  The 
status  of  these  roads  was  the  same  then  as  in  1848 
when  Lincoln  the  Congressman  had  made  use  of  them. 
At  Newark  he  was  called  upon  to  say  something  in  re- 
sponse to  the  words  of  welcome  from  the  mayor,  and  at 
Trenton  he  was  met  by  a  committee  from  the  Legisla- 
ture which  escorted  him  to  the  State  House.  Here  he 
addressed  both  Senate  and  Assembly  separately,  and 
afterwards  spoke  to  a  crowd  from  the  Trenton  House, 
where  the  party  lunched.  Following  this,  they  boarded 
the  special  provided  by  the  Philadelphia  and  Trenton 
Railroad,  reaching  Kensington  depot  in  Philadelphia 
at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

From  the  balcony  of  the  Continental  Hotel,  where 
Lincoln  remained  overnight,  Mayor  Henry  made  an 
address  of  welcome,  to  which  Lincoln  replied  with  a 
brief  speech.  As  in  New  York,  the  crowds  encountered 
in  Philadelphia  were  tremendous,  and  enthusiasm  ran 
high. 

The  following  morning  the  party  made  its  way 
through  the  streets  with  difficulty  to  Independence 
Hall,  where  Lincoln  made  two  speeches.  Thence  they 
proceeded  directly  to  the  depot  to  take  train  for  Har- 
risburg,  the  state  capital. 

As  far  as  Lancaster  the  Pennsylvania  road  followed 
practically  the  same  route  as  used  to-day,  by  way  of 
Downington.  It  had  leased  another  short  line  known 
as  the  Harrisburg,  Portsmouth,  Mount  Joy  and  Lan- 
caster, and  operated  the  two  lines  as  one,  to  Harris- 
burg. 


190      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

The  capital  was  reached  about  two  o'clock  that  after- 
noon. After  replying  to  an  address  of  welcome  by  Gov- 
ernor Curtin,  Lincoln  was  escorted  to  the  Legislature, 
before  both  branches  of  which  in  joint  session  he  de- 
livered a  short  speech.  While  in  Harrisburg  the  party 
stopped  at  the  Jones  House. 

Up  to  this  point  the  journey,  now  so  nearly  com- 
pleted, had  been  in  the  nature  of  a  triumphal  progress. 
No  discordant  note  had  been  struck,  no  outward  threat 
made.  Had  an  assassin  lurked,  he  must  have  had  fre- 
quent opportunities  to  strike  a  blow,  as  the  tall  form 
of  the  man  of  destiny  made  its  way  through  the  dense 
throngs.  The  constant  change  from  road  to  road  like- 
wise offered  chances  for  the  desperate  train-wrecker 
or  bomb-thrower.  The  railroad  and  secret  service  of- 
ficials were  constantly  alert,  and  doubtless  each  com- 
pany heaved  a  sigh  of  relief  when  the  presidential  party 
had  passed  safely  over  its  lines. 

At  Harrisburg  disturbing  rumors  came  to  those  who 
guarded  the  safety  of  Lincoln.  Baltimore,  which  was  to 
be  visited  on  the  way  to  Washington,  was  a  doubtful 
quantity.  It  was  said  that  a  plot  had  been  hatched  to 
assassinate  the  President-elect  as  he  passed  through 
there.  Definite  intelligence  had  reached  the  ears  of  the 
secret  service,  who  also  knew  the  uncertain  temper  of 
this  semi-Southern  city — later  shown  by  its  treatment 
of  some  of  the  first  Northern  troops  to  march  through 
a  few  months  later.  Under  the  circumstances  the  per- 
sons charged  with  safeguarding  Lincoln  wisely  de- 
cided to  take  no  chances. 

It  had  been  the  intention  of  the  party  to  leave  Har- 
risburg for  Baltimore  over  the  Northern  Central  Rail- 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861    191 

way,  at  nine  o'clock  the  next  morning.  It  will  be 
observed  that  on  all  the  route  up  to  this  point  the  presi- 
dential train  had  traveled  in  the  daytime,  and  avoided 
night  runs.  This  was  due  to  at  least  three  reasons: 
the  greater  safety  of  day  travel;  the  lack  of  sleeping- 
cars  worthy  of  the  name ;  and  the  opportunity  given  the 
waiting  throngs  to  greet  Lincoln. 

However,  under  the  new  plan,  while  the  majority  of 
the  party  carried  out  the  original  schedule  and  pro- 
ceeded on  to  Baltimore,  Abraham  Lincoln,  accompanied 
by  Ward  H.  Lamon  and  Allan  Pinkerton  the  detective, 
that  night  traveled  in  a  special  train  consisting  of  an 
engine  and  one  car  over  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
back  to  Philadelphia.  Here  a  change  was  secretly  made 
to  the  sleeping-car  of  the  regular  midnight  Philadel- 
phia, Wilmington  and  Baltimore  express,  which  con- 
nected with  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  running  into 
Washington  at  Baltimore.  By  this  arrangement  the 
President-elect  and  his  two  companions  reached  the 
capital  city  at  six  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  23rd. 
A  striking  contrast  this  to  the  beginning  and  progress 
of  his  journey!  Here  at  the  end  a  deserted  platform 
along  which  three  figures  hurried  to  a  waiting  carriage. 
Thus  it  was  that  President  Lincoln  reached  Washing- 
ton. 

As  for  the  journey  itself,  which  we  have  hurriedly 
sketched  from  its  transportation  side,  "a  proper  de- 
scription," say  his  secretaries,  "would  fill  a  volume. 
It  embraced  two  weeks  of  official  receptions  by  com- 
mittees, mayors,  governors  and  legislatures ;  of  crowded 
evening  receptions  and  interminable  hand-shakings ;  of 
impromptu  or  formal  addresses   at  every  ceremony; 


192      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

of  cheers,  salutes,  bonfires,  military  parades,  and  im- 
posing processions  amid  miles  of  spectators.  Political 
discussion  was  for  the  moment  hushed  in  the  general 
curiosity  to  see  and  hear  the  man,  who  by  free  and  law- 
ful choice  of  the  nation  had  been  called  to  exercise  the 
duties  of  the  presidential  office." 

Villard,  one  of  the  correspondents  accompanying  the 
party,  says:  "Everywhere  there  were  formal  welcomes 
by  the  state  or  municipal  authorities  and  by  great 
crowds  of  people,  with  brass  bands,  and  public  and  pri- 
vate receptions.  In  different  localities  pleasant  varia- 
tions were  offered  in  the  way  of  serenades,  torchlight 
processions,  and  gala  theatrical  performances.  Alto- 
gether, the  President  had  every  reason  to  feel  flattered 
and  encouraged  by  the  demonstrations  in  his  honor. 
But  the  journey  was  a  very  great  strain  upon  his 
physical  and  mental  strength,  and  he  was  well-nigh 
worn  out  when  he  reached  Buffalo.  He  must  have  spoken 
at  least  fifty  times  during  the  week.  In  the  kindness  of 
his  heart — not  from  any  love  of  adulation,  for  he  really 
felt  very  awkward  about  it — he  never  refused  to  re- 
spond to  a  call  for  his  appearance  wherever  the  train 
stopped." 

One  other  phase  of  this  momentous  journey  should 
be  discussed  for  the  purposes  of  the  present  study.  This 
is  in  regard  to  the  expenses  of  the  trip,  and  by  whom 
borne. 

At  this  late  day  it  is  seemingly  impossible  to  get  at 
the  facts  regarding  these  expenses.  Mr.  Henry  B.  Ran- 
kin, yet  living  at  an  advanced  age,  was  a  student  in 
the  law  office  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon  at  the  time.  In 
a  communication  referring  to  this  Mr.  Rankin  says: 


JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  IN  1861     193 

"Memory  impressions  of  my  own  as  to  who  met  the  ex- 
penses I  am  not  disposed  to  rely  on.  I  am — in  mem- 
ory— quite  sure  Lincoln  and  his  family  met  their 
expenses,  in  part,  but  that  the  railways  gave  passes  to 
the  Lincoln  household  and  secretaries.  But  I  will  not  be 
positive  I  am  correct." 

Lincoln's  secretaries  and  biographers,  Nicolay  and 
Hay,  refer  to  the  tendering  of  special  trains  to  the 
party  by  different  roads,  but  make  no  further  comment 
upon  the  details.  We  do  not  know,  therefore,  whether 
this  applied  to  all  roads  or  not,  or  what  arrangement 
was  made  to  defray  other  necessary  transportation  ex- 
penses. 


CHAPTER    XIX 

LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC 

The  most  important  railway  measure  with  which  Lin- 
coln as  President  was  associated  was  the  projection  of 
the  Union  Pacific,  the  first  railway  line  to  link  up 
the  East  with  the  far  West.  Although  this  road  be- 
came a  reality  some  years  after  his  death,  it  was  a  pro- 
ject which  had  profoundly  interested  him  even  before 
he  became  President,  and  it  is  undoubtedly  true  that 
his  aid  while  in  the  White  House  hastened  its  reality. 

Lincoln  had  lived  all  his  life  on  the  border  of  the 
great  West,  and  must  have  visioned  the  tremendous  fu- 
ture of  this  country  when  the  Plains  over  which  the 
buffalo  roamed  were  converted  into  wheat  and  corn 
fields,  and  when  the  Pacific  Slope  had  been  brought  into 
communication  with  the  rest  of  the  Union.  Staunch 
Unionist  that  he  was,  he  early  realized  the  necessity 
of  making  that  Union  a  physical  possibility. 

A  year  prior  to  his  nomination  to  the  presidency — 
to  be  exact,  in  August,  1859, — he  had  visited  Council 
Bluffs,  Iowa,  to  look  after  his  real  estate  holdings 
there  and  incidentally  see  the  country.  A  contemplated 
railroad  to  extend  westward  from  the  Missouri  River 
to  the  Pacific  Coast  was  a  live  but  no  new  topic.  For 
years  such  a  possibility  had  been  discussed,  and  in  the 
first  national  campaign  conducted  by  the  Republican 
party  in  1856,  a  Pacific  railroad  was  made  a  rather 

194 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     195 

prominent  issue.  The  party's  presidential  nominee, 
John  C.  Fremont,  the  "Pathfinder,"  on  account  of  his 
Western  explorations,  was  thought  to  be  the  right  man 
to  push  such  a  project. 

The  Democrats,  also,  deemed  it  necessary  to  en- 
dorse the  plan;  however,  they  could  not  favor  it  too 
strongly,  because  of  the  influence  of  the  Southern  mem- 
bers, who  believed  that  the  extension  of  slavery  would 
necessarily  be  retarded  by  the  construction  of  such  a 
road. 

There  was  much  interest  shown  throughout  the  coun- 
try in  the  proposition.  But  with  the  election  of 
Buchanan,  the  project  was  not  promoted  very  vigor- 
ously, although  several  desultory  attempts  were  made 
to  pass  legislation  relating  thereto.  In  fact,  to  precede 
our  story,  in  December,  1860,  a  bill  introduced  in  the 
House  by  Representative  Samuel  R.  Curtis,  of  Iowa, 
sponsoring  a  Union  Pacific  Railroad,  was  passed  by 
that  body,  but  allowed  to  go  no  further. 

Shortly  before  his  trip  to  Council  Bluffs,  Abraham 
Lincoln  had  purchased  several  town  lots  from  his  fel- 
low railroad  attorney,  Norman  B.  Judd,  who  had  ac- 
quired them  from  the  Chicago  and  Rock  Island  Rail- 
road. Council  Bluffs  at  this  time  was  a  frontier  town, 
containing  about  fifteen  hundred  people. 

Accompanied  by  O.  M.  Hatch,  Secretary  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  Lincoln  had  come  from  Saint  Joseph,  Mis- 
souri, up  the  Missouri  River  by  steamboat.  They  put 
up  at  the  Pacific  Hotel.  This  was  on  August  12.  The 
following  night,  Lincoln,  at  the  request  of  the  citizens 
of  the  community,  who  thought  favorably  of  him  on 
account  of  the  manner  in  which  he  had  conducted  his 


196      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

debates  with  Douglas,  delivered  a  speech  in  Concert 
Hall. 

Almost  simultaneously  with  Lincoln's  arrival,  Gren- 
ville  M.  Dodge,  then  a  young  engineer  in  the  employ 
of  several  railroad  promoters,  had  returned  from  a  sur- 
veying trip  for  a  proposed  Pacific  Railroad,  and  had 
camped  with  his  party  in  a  ravine  north  of  the  town. 
He  attended  the  meeting  in  Concert  Hall  and  listened 
with  much  interest  to  the  speech  of  the  Illinoisan,  which 
impressed  him  favorably  on  the  slavery  question. 

Lincoln,  having  heard  of  the  arrival  of  the  engineer- 
ing party,  desired  some  first-hand  information.  Gen- 
eral Dodge,  many  years  afterward,  gave  the  following 
account  of  the  interview,  which  lasted  about  two  hours, 
and  which  took  place  on  the  porch  of  the  Pacific  Hotel. 

"After  dinner  at  the  hotel,"  said  the  general,  "Mr. 
Lincoln  sought  me  out,  and  engaged  me  in  conversa- 
tion about  what  I  knew  of  the  country  west  of  the 
Missouri  River.  He  greatly  impressed  me  by  the  marked 
interest  he  displayed  in  the  work  in  which  I  was  en- 
gaged, and  he  expressed  himself  as  believing  that  there 
was  nothing  more  important  before  the  nation  at  that 
time  than  the  building  of  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific 
Coast.  He  ingeniously  extracted  a  great  deal  of  in- 
formation from  me  about  the  country  beyond  the  river, 
the  climate,  the  character  of  the  soil,  the  resources,  the 
rivers  and  the  route.  When  the  long  conversation  was 
ended,  I  realized  that  most  of  the  things  that  I  had 
been  holding  as  secrets  for  my  employers  in  the  East, 
had  been  given  to  him  without  reserve." 

General  Dodge  also  relates  that  "during  Lincoln's 
visit,  some  of  the  citizens  of  Council  Bluffs  took  him 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     197 

to  a  high  bluff  known  as  Cemetery  Hill,  just  north  of 
the  town.  From  this  point  could  be  had  a  view  of  the 
country  ten  miles  north  and  ten  miles  south,  up  and 
down  the  great  Missouri  River  valley,  and  across  the 
Missouri  River  five  miles  west.  He  was  greatly  im- 
pressed with  the  outlook ;  and  the  bluff  from  that  time 
has  been  known  as  Lincoln's  Hill.  .  .  .  From  here  he 
looked  down  upon  the  place,  where  by  his  order,  four 
years  later,  the  terminus  of  the  first  trans-continental 
railway  was  established." 

The  platform  of  the  Republican  National  Conven- 
tion, that  nominated  Abraham  Lincoln  for  President 
in  May,  1860,  at  Chicago,  declared  in  the  sixteenth 
plank :  "That  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  is  impera- 
tively demanded  by  the  interests  of  the  whole  country ; 
that  the  Federal  Government  ought  to  render  imme- 
diate and  efficient  aid  in  its  construction ;  and  that,  as 
preliminary  thereto,  a  daily  overland  mail  should  be 
promptly  established." 

Lincoln,  as  nominee,  in  his  letter  of  acceptance,  re- 
ferring to  the  platform  in  general,  said  "the  declara- 
tion of  principles  and  sentiments  .  .  .  meets  my 
approval :  and  it  shall  be  my  care  not  to  violate  or  dis- 
regard it  in  any  part." 

He  later  was  to  be  given  opportunity  to  put  into 
practical  effect  the  declaration  regarding  the  Pacific 
Railroad.  At  the  extra  session  of  Congress  convened  by 
him  as  President  in  July,  1861,  Representative  Curtis 
reintroduced  his  bill  for  a  road  to  be  known  as  the 
Union  Pacific.  Action  was  retarded  by  the  outbreak 
of  war,  and  Curtis  shortly  afterwards  resigned  his  own 
seat  for  a  commission  in  the  Federal  army. 


198      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

In  the  Senate,  James  Harlan,  of  Iowa,  later  a  mem- 
ber of  President  Lincoln's  Cabinet,  became  a  strong 
advocate  of  the  measure.  But  probably  there  was  no 
firmer  friend  of  the  Union  Pacific  bill  than  the  Presi- 
dent himself,  who  advocated  its  passage  and  the  con- 
struction of  the  road,  "not  only  as  a  military  necessity, 
but  as  a  means  of  holding  the  Pacific  Coast  to  the 
Union,"  as  General  Dodge  has  said. 

Finally,  in  1862,  a  law  was  passed  chartering  "The 
Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company."  This  was  entitled 
"An  Act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  and 
telegraph  line  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  and  to  secure  to  the  government  the  use  of  the 
same  for  postal,  military,  and  other  purposes."  The 
Act  was  approved  by  President  Lincoln  on  July  1. 

Under  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  to  the  President  of 
the  United  States  was  delegated  specific  authority  as 
to  the  appointment  of  directors  and  commissioners.  He 
was  also  authorized  to  fix  the  point  of  commencement 
in  the  territory  of  Nebraska;  approve  the  route  in 
Kansas;  decide  which  were  the  three  hundred  miles 
most  mountainous  and  difficult  of  construction  (this 
having  to  do  with  the  number  of  bonds  issued  to  cover)  ; 
determine  the  uniform  width  of  track  upon  the  entire 
line,  including  its  branches;  fix  the  point  on  the  west- 
ern boundary  of  the  State  of  Iowa  from  which  the 
road  was  to  be  constructed,  and  fix  certain  other  points 
and  junctions  in  connection  with  the  Union  Pacific 
and  other  roads  mentioned  and  sponsored  in  the 
Act. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  how  Lincoln  was  inextricably  con- 
nected with  the  active  construction  of  the  road,  and  that 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    199 

upon  him  would  necessarily  devolve  the  settlement  of 
many  important  questions. 

This  Act,  in  addition  to  chartering  the  Union  Pa- 
cific, authorized  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  of  Cal- 
ifornia, chartered  under  the  laws  of  that  state,  to 
construct  a  road  and  telegraph  line  eastward  from  the 
Pacific  Coast,  to  the  eastern  boundary  of  California, 
there  to  meet  and  join  with  the  Union  Pacific;  or  in 
the  event  of  the  California  Company  arriving  there 
first,  continue  construction  eastward  until  they  should 
meet  at  a  point  nearer  the  Missouri  River. 

On  September  £  an  organization  was  perfected  and 
a  set  of  officers  elected.  Samuel  R.  Curtis,  now  a  Major- 
General,  was  elected  chairman  of  the  board  of  com- 
missioners. Peter  A.  Dey,  under  whom  Grenville  M. 
Dodge  had  done  his  first  surveying  west  of  the  Mis- 
souri River,  was  selected  to  make  a  survey  from  the 
Missouri  to  Salt  Lake,  and  to  have  a  report  ready  for 
the  next  meeting  of  the  board. 

The  writer's  investigations  into  the  relations  of  Pres- 
ident Lincoln  to  the  Union  Pacific  during  the  formative 
period  of  the  road,  led  to  the  Governmental  depart- 
ments at  Washington.  Through  the  courtesy  of  Mr. 
F.  M.  Goodwin,  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Department 
of  the  Interior,  all  the  records  in  relation  thereto,  on 
file  in  the  Office  of  the  Commissioner  of  Railroads,  were 
placed  at  his  disposal.  There,  among  other  data,  seven 
orders,  appointments  and  endorsements  of  President 
Lincoln,  hitherto  unpublished,  were  discovered,  all  of 
which  are  incorporated  in  this  chapter. 

Mr.  L.  O.  Leonard,  present  historian  of  the  Union 
Pacific  system,  engaged  in  compiling  data  for  an  offi- 


200      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

cial  history  of  the  road,  informs  the  writer  that  in  his 
researches  he  formed  the  opinion  "that  no  statesman 
that  ever  lived  had  a  keener  interest  in  the  Union  Pa- 
cific than  Abraham  Lincoln.  His  clear  vision  of  the 
future  and  what  transportation  really  meant  to  the 
country  he  loved  so  well,  and  for  which  he  gave  his 
life,  is  most  clearly  shown  in  the  close  scrutiny  it  is 
quite  evident  he  gave  to  all  those  papers  which  were 
presented  to  him  for  his  signature." 

We  must  also  remember  that  this  was  during  the 
stress  and  strain  of  the  Civil  War,  when  the  Chief  Ex- 
ecutive's mind  was  burdened  with  a  thousand  military 
details. 

In  the  spring  of  1863  General  Dodge  relates  that  he 
received  orders  from  his  superior  officer,  General  Grant, 
to  report  to  the  President  at  Washington.  His  thought 
was  that  he  was  about  to  be  taken  to  task  for  some 
military  offense.  Entering  the  service  early  in  the  war, 
Dodge  had  risen  to  the  rank  of  Brigadier-General  of 
volunteers,  and  was  then  stationed  at  Corinth. 

But  he  was  soon  disabused,  although  Lincoln  was 
aware  of  his  so-called  "offense."  He  found  that  Presi- 
dent Lincoln,  with  his  marvelous  memory  and  keen 
judgment,  wanted  to  discuss  with  him  the  proper  place 
where  the  initial  point  of  the  Union  Pacific  should  be 
located.  This,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  one  of  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Act  of  1862,  which  the  President  should 
determine.  He  had  recalled  the  conversation  with  the 
young  engineer  on  the  hotel  porch  in  Council  Bluffs 
four  years  before. 

General  Dodge,  in  narrating  his  account  of  this  in- 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     201 

terview,  says:  "There  was  great  competition  from  all 
the  towns  on  both  sides  of  the  Missouri  River  for  fifty 
miles  above  and  below  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,  for  the  dis- 
tinction of  being  selected  as  this  initial  point.  I  found 
Mr.  Lincoln  well  posted  in  all  the  controlling  reasons 
covering  such  a  selection,  and  we  went  into  the  matter  at 
length  and  discussed  the  arguments  presented  by  the 
different  competing  localities.  I  detailed  to  him,  in  so 
far  as  I  could  without  having  my  maps  or  data  at  hand, 
where,  from  an  engineering  and  commercial  point  of 
view,  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  should  make  its  start- 
ing point  from  the  western  boundary  of  Iowa. 

"The  physical  conditions  of  the  country  both  east 
and  west  of  the  Missouri  River  controlled  this  selection. 
Directly  west  of  Council  Bluffs  was  the  great  Platte 
valley,  extending  from  the  base  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains in  one  continuous  valley  six  hundred  miles  east 
to  the  Missouri  River.  The  survey  we  had  made  for  the 
Union  Pacific  followed  this  valley  the  entire  distance 
and  crossed  the  divide  of  the  continent  through  an  open 
county,  not  exceeding  8,000  feet  in  elevation,  while  to 
the  north  and  south  the  Rocky  Mountains  towered 
from  ten  to  thirteen  thousand  feet  high. 

"It  is  a  singular  fact,  that  while  the  United  States 
had  spent  a  great  deal  of  money  in  exploration  for  a 
feasible  line  for  the  Pacific  Railroad,  the  Government 
never  had  examined  the  natural  route  along  the  forty- 
second  parallel  of  latitude.  All  the  surveys  had  been 
made  and  all  the  data  obtained  by  private  citizens 
connected  with  the  Rock  Island  Railroad,  at  the  head 
of  which  was  Henry  Farnam,  of  Connecticut.  President 


202      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Lincoln,  after  going  over  all  the  facts  that  could  be 
presented  to  him,  and  from  his  own  knowledge,  finally 
fixed  the  eastern  terminus  of  the  Union  Pacific  Rail- 
road where  our  surveys  determined  the  proper  locality 
— at  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa. 

"After  this  discussion  of  the  location,  he  took  up  with 
me  the  question  of  building  the  road.  The  law  of  1862 
had  failed  to  bring  any  capital  or  men  to  undertake 
the  work,  and  I  said  to  him  that  in  my  opinion  private 
enterprise  could  not  build  the  road. 

"Mr.  Lincoln  said  that  the  Government  had  its  hands 
full,  and  could  not  assume  the  task,  but  was  ready  to 
support  any  company  to  the  fullest  legal  extent,  and 
amend  the  law  so  as  to  enable  such  a  company  to  issue 
securities  that  would  furnish  the  necessary  funds." 

When  General  Dodge  left  Washington,  he  went  to 
New  York  and  there  met  the  parties  who  were  con- 
nected with  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  as  it  was  then 
constituted,  John  A.  Dix,  Henry  Farnam,  T.  S.  Du- 
rant,  George  Francis  Train,  and  others.  In  an  execu- 
tive session  he  narrated  to  them  an  account  of  his  inter- 
view with  President  Lincoln  and  what  he  had  said 
concerning  the  part  the  Government  would  play  in  any 
further  developments.  Thus  encouraged,  the  officials 
went  to  work  on  a  new  measure  to  be  presented  to  the 
next  Congress  for  action. 

One  of  the  results  of  General  Dodge's  call  upon  Lin- 
coln was  the  issuance  of  an  official  order,  several  months 
later,  written  by  the  President,  locating  the  starting 
point  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  on  the  western 
boundary  of  Iowa.  It  reads  as  follows: 


Courtesy,    Union   Pacific    Railroad 


GENERAL  GREXVILLE  M.  DODGE 


The  man  with  whom  Lincoln  consulted  about  the  projected  road 
across  to  the  Pacific,  both  before  and  after  he  became  President. 
Dodge  was  a  young  civil  engineer  when  Lincoln  first  met  him,  and 
after  the  Civil  War  was  long  connected  with  the  Union  Pacific. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    203 

Executive  Mansion, 

Washington,  November  17,  1863. 

In  pursuance  of  the  fourteenth  section  of  the  Act  of 
Congress,  entitled  "An  Act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of 
a  Pacific  Railroad  and  Telegraph  line  from  the  Mis- 
souri River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  to  secure  to  the 
Government  the  use  of  the  same  for  postal,  military  and 
other  purposes,"  approved  July  1,  1862; 

I,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States, 
do  hereby  fix  so  much  of  the  western  boundary  of  the 
State  of  Iowa  as  lies  between  the  north  and  south  bound- 
aries of  the  United  States  Township,  within  which  the 
City  of  Omaha  is  situated,  as  the  point  from  which  the 
line  of  railroad  and  telegraph  in  that  section  shall  be 
onstructed. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

In  answer  to  a  communication  received  from  John 
A.  Dix,  then  president  of  the  Union  Pacific,  President 
Lincoln  directed  one  of  his  secretaries  to  send  the  fol- 
lowing reply: 

Executive  Mansion,  December  1,  1863. 

Major-General  John  A.  Dix, 

President  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company, 
New  York. 

Dear  Sir: 

I  have  not  been  permitted  until  to-day  to  present  to 
the  President  your  communication  of  November  23.  He 
directs  me  to  express  his  deep  regret  that  his  illness  will 
prevent  him  from  giving  on  this  occasion  expression  to 
the  profound  interest  he  feels  in  the  success  of  a  work 


204      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

so  vast  and  so  beneficent  as  that  which  you  are  about  to 
inaugurate. 

Respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

John  Hay,  Assistant  Private  Secretary. 

The  illness  referred  to  was  a  mild  attack  of  varioloid, 
contracted  shortly  after  his  journey  to  the  battlefield 
of  Gettysburg  to  take  part  in  the  dedicatory  exercises. 

In  December,  1863,  the  Thirty-eighth  Congress  as- 
sembled. An  amendatory  act  in  connection  with  the 
one  passed  by  the  preceding  Congress  was  early  agi- 
tated. 

In  his  Annual  Message  to  Congress,  December  8,  the 
President,  in  referring  to  a  proposition  for  enlarging 
the  water  communication  between  the  Mississippi  River 
and  the  northeastern  seaboard,  said  that  "augmented 
interest  is  given  to  this  subject  by  the  actual  commence- 
ment of  work  upon  the  Pacific  Railroad,  under  auspices 
so  favorable  to  rapid  progress  and  completion.  The 
enlarged  navigation  becomes  a  palpable  need  to  the 
great  road." 

On  March  1,  1864,  the  Senate  passed  a  resolution 
of  inquiry  as  to  whether  the  President  had  fixed  the 
point  of  commencement  of  the  Pacific  railroad,  as 
authorized  by  the  8th  and  14th  sections  of  the  act 
incorporating  the  road.  Six  days  later  President  Lin- 
coln issued  the  following: 

In  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  section  14,  of  the 
act  of  Congress  entitled  "An  Act  to  aid  in  the  construc- 
tion of  a  Railroad  and  Telegraph  Line  from  the  Mis- 
souri River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  to  secure  to  the 
Government  the  use  of  the  same  for  Postal,  Military, 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     205 

and  other  purposes"  approved  July  1st,  1862,  authoriz- 
ing and  directing  the  President  of  the  United  States,  to 
fix  the  point  on  the  Western  boundary  of  the  State  of 
Iowa,  from  which  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company 
is  by  said  section  authorized  and  required  to  construct 
a  single  line  of  Railroad  and  telegraph,  upon  the  most 
direct  and  practicable  route,  subject  to  the  approval  of 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  so  as  to  form  a  con- 
nection with  the  lines  of  said  Company  at  some  point  on 
the  one  hundredth  meridian  of  longitude  in  said  section 
named : 

I,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States, 
do,  upon  the  application  of  the  said  Company,  designate 
and  establish  such  first  above  named  point,  on  the  West- 
ern boundary  of  the  State  of  Iowa,  East  of,  and  op- 
posite to  the  East  line  of  Section  10,  in  Township  15, 
North  of  Range  IS,  East  of  the  Sixth  principal  merid- 
ian, in  the  Territory  of  Nebraska. 

Done  at  the  City  of  Washington,  this  seventh  day  of 
March,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord,  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  sixty-four. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

This  was  followed  by  a  special  Message  to  the  Senate, 
still  further  clarifying  the  matter  and  revealing  Lin- 
coln's keen  interest  in  the  project. 

March  9,  1864. 

To  the  Senate  of  the  United  States : 

In  compliance  with  the  resolution  of  the  Senate,  of 
the  first  instant,  respecting  the  points  of  commence- 
ment of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad;  on  the  one  hun- 
dredth degree  of  west  longitude,  and  of  the  branch  road 
from  the  western  boundary  of  Iowa  to  the  said  one  hun- 
dredth degree  of  longitude,  I  transmit  the  accompany- 


206      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ing  report  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  contain- 
ing the  information  called  for. 

I  deem  it  proper  to  add,  that  on  the  seventeenth  day 
of  November  last  an  executive  order  was  made  upon  this 
subject  and  delivered  to  the  vice-president  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,  which  fixed  the  point  on  the 
western  boundary  of  the  State  of  Iowa,  from  which  the 
company  should  construct  their  branch  road  to  the  one 
hundredth  degree  of  west  longitude,  and  declared  it  to 
be  within  the  limits  of  the  township,  in  Iowa,  opposite 
the  town  of  Omaha,  in  Nebraska.  Since  then  the  com- 
pany has  represented  to  me  that,  upon  actual  surveys 
made,  it  has  determined  upon  the  precise  point  of  de- 
parture of  their  said  branch  road  from  the  Missouri 
River,  and  located  the  same  as  described  in  the  accom- 
panying report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  which 
point  is  within  the  limits  designated  in  the  order  of 
November  last ;  and  in  as  much  as  that  order  is  not  of 
record  in  any  of  the  executive  departments,  and  the 
company  having  desired  a  more  definite  one,  I  have 
made  the  order  of  which  a  copy  is  herewith  (trans- 
mitted) and  caused  the  same  to  be  filed  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

The  latter  order  referred  to  is  the  one  issued  two 
days  before. 

The  platform  of  the  Republican  National  Conven- 
tion held  in  Baltimore,  June  7  and  8  of  the  same  year, 
would  necessarily  be  supposed  to  contain  some  refer- 
ence to  the  Pacific  road,  as  it  had  been  sponsored  by  the 
Republican  administration.  Other  matters,  chiefly  the 
War  itself  pressed  for  attention.  However,  this  measure 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    807 

could  not  be  ignored.  The  ninth  plank,  in  a  total  of 
eleven,  read : 

"Resolved,  That  we  are  in  favor  of  the  speedy  con- 
struction of  the  railroad  to  the  Pacific  Coast." 

The  long-looked-for  amendatory  act  was  finally 
passed  by  both  Houses  of  Congress,  and  signed  by  the 
President,  July  2,  1864.  Under  the  provisions  of  this 
law,  the  President  of  the  United  States  was  authorized 
to  do  the  following: 

Designate  places  in  each  of  several  cities  named  in 
addition  to  the  general  office  of  the  company  in  New 
York  City,  as  well  as  other  localities  selected  by  him,  at 
which  subscriptions  to  the  capital  stock  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  Company  were  to  be  received. 

Appoint  for  each  and  every  one  of  the  roads  pro- 
vided for  in  the  original  act,  three  commissioners  to  ex- 
amine the  first  twenty  miles  of  railroad  and  telegraph 
line  completed,  instead  of  three  commissioners  for  the 
Union  Pacific  alone  when  forty  miles  had  been  finished. 

Appoint  three  directors  to  serve  until  the  next  regu- 
lar election,  in  addition  to  those  elected  by  the  stock- 
holders, which  were  to  be  fifteen  in  number ;  and  there- 
after appoint  five  directors. 

Several  members  of  the  Thirty-eighth  Congress  have 
left  their  impressions  of  the  law  as  finally  passed,  with 
reference  to  the  financial  aid  extended  by  the  United 
States  Government. 

James  G.  Blaine,  then  serving  in  the  House,  says 
that  "the  necessity  of  communication  with  our  Pacific 
possessions  was  so  generally  recognized  that  Congress 


208      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

was  willing  to  extend  generous  aid  to  any  company 
which  was  ready  to  complete  the  enterprise.  The  as- 
sociation of  gentlemen  who  had  organized  under  the 
provisions  of  the  (original)  Act,  were  unable,  as  they 
reported,  to  construct  the  road  upon  the  conditions  pre- 
scribed and  the  aid  tendered.  It  was  impossible  to  re- 
alize money  from  the  lands  under  the  grant,  as  they 
were  too  remote  for  settlement,  and  $16,000  per  mile 
was  declared  insufficient  to  secure  the  means  requisite 
for  the  construction  of  the  road  across  trackless  plains, 
and  through  rugged  passes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

"The  corporators  had  accordingly  returned  to  Con- 
gress in  1864  for  further  help,  and  such  was  the  anx- 
iety in  the  public  mind  to  promote  the  connection  with 
the  Pacific  that  enlarged  and  most  generous  provision 
was  made  for  the  completion  of  the  road.  The  land 
grant  was  doubled  in  amount ;  the  Government  for  cer- 
tain difficult  portions  of  the  road  allowed  $32,000  per 
mile,  and  for  certain  mountainous  sections  $48,000  per 
mile.  The  whole  of  this  munificent  grant  was  then  sub- 
ordinated as  a  second  mortgage  upon  the  road  and  its 
franchise,  and  the  company  was  empowered  to  issue 
a  first  mortgage  for  the  same  amount  for  each  mile — 
for  $16,000,  $32,000  and  $48,000,  according  to  the 
character  of  the  country  through  which  the  road  was 
to  pass. 

"The  terrible  struggle  to  retain  the  Southern  States 
in  the  Union  had  persuaded  the  Administration  and  the 
Government  that  no  pains  should  be  spared  and  no 
expenditures  stinted  to  insure  the  connection  which 
might  quicken  the  sympathy  and  more  directly  combine 
the  interests  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Coasts."  He 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     209 

adds,  however,  that  "a  more  careful  circumspection 
might  perhaps  have  secured  the  work  with  less  expendi- 
ture." 

On  the  other  hand,  John  Sherman,  then  representing 
Ohio  in  the  House,  says  that  such  bills  prove  "that  it 
is  not  wise  during  war  to  provide  measures  for  a  time 
of  peace. 

"Under  this  Act,  the  first  lien  of  the  United  States 
for  bonds  advanced  to  the  company,  provided  for  by 
the  Act  of  1862,  was  made  subordinate  to  the  lien  of 
the  bonds  of  the  company  sold  in  market — a  fatal  er- 
ror, which  lent  to  all  the  serious  complications  which 
followed.  The  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  the  first  mortgage 
bonds  of  the  company,  with  a  portion  of  those  issued 
by  the  United  States  in  aid  of  the  company,  built  both 
the  Union  and  Central  Pacific,  so  that  the  constructors 
of  these  roads,  who  were  mainly  directors  and  managers 
of  the  company,  practically  received  as  profit  a  large 
portion  of  the  bonds  of  the  United  States  issued  in  aid 
of  the  work,  and  almost  the  entire  capital  stock  of 
the  company. 

"If  the  Act  had  been  delayed  until  after  the  War, 
when  the  securities  of  the  United  States  rapidly  ad- 
vanced in  value,  it  could  not  have  passed  in  the  form 
it  did.  The  construction  of  the  road  was  practically 
not  commenced  until  the  War  was  over.  The  con- 
structors had  the  benefit  of  the  advancing  value  of  the 
bonds  and  of  the  increasing  purchasing  power  of  United 
States  notes." 

Cornelius  Cole,  member  from  California,  naturally 
interested  in  the  construction  of  such  a  transporta- 
tion system  which  should  link  his  section  with  the  East, 


210      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

as  one  of  the  Committee  on  the  Pacific  Railroad,  and 
having  several  times  crossed  the  Plains,  was  much  in 
consultation  with  President  Lincoln,  Thaddeus  Stevens, 
Chairman  of  the  Committee,  and  others. 

"The  work  of  building  the  roads,"  says  Mr.  Cole, 
"had  devolved  upon  the  Republican  party.  The  War, 
instead  of  impeding,  added  arguments  in  favor  of  its 
early  completion,  as  the  railroad  was  now  deemed  de- 
sirable from  a  military  point  of  view,  and  not  less 
so,  to  unite  more  firmly  our  Pacific  Coast  possessions 
with  the  Atlantic  States.  .  .  .  Better  overland  com- 
munication, by  reason  of  the  war,  being  rendered  ex- 
tremely desirable,  everybody  was  clamorous  for  the 
railroad;  consequently  it  was  deemed  advisable  for 
Congress  to  encourage  its  builders  by  doubling  the  land 
grants  to  the  companies,  and  to  allow  them  to  issue 
their  own  first  mortgage  bonds  to  an  amount  equal  to 
the  Government  bonds,  such  bonds  to  take  precedence 
of  the  Government  bonds  and  to  constitute  a  first  lien 
upon  the  roads.  These,  and  some  twenty  other  amend- 
ments and  provisions,  were  added  to  the  original  law, 
rendering  it  eminently  practical  and  as  free  from  ob- 
structions as  the  builders  of  the  road  could  desire.  After 
this  the  work  was  prosecuted  with  unexampled  energy." 

After  the  passage  of  the  Act,  many  communications 
recommending  that  General  Dodge  be  appointed  one 
of  the  Government  Commissioners  began  to  be  received 
by  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  and  are  on  file  there 
to-day.  The  appointment,  however,  was  not  made.  The 
following  order  appointing  the  three  directors  on  the 
part  of  the  Government  was  issued  by  the  President: 


*M^$c&J£ ,  \«bf 

3o  fcb>    cr1^<U^  of 

I^sCCZj    <4CJi<K?t    1+/1&&J    /fLj    a^^    ou^CX^j, 
G-1     Q*      C/tU^^v^-c^^O      C^lXtCjO 


Courtesy,   Dwight    C.   Morgai 

A    LETTER    OF    RECOMMENDATION 

Written  by  President  Lincoln,  in  1863,  to  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad,  on  behalf  of  his  friend,  Richard  P.  Morgan.  Although 
Lincoln  had  two  secretaries,  he  wrote  many  letters  and  papers 
personally. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     211 

Executive  Mansion. 

July  19th,   1864. 

By  virtue  of  the  authority  conferred  upon  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  by  the  thirteenth  section  of 
the  Act  of  Congress  approved  July  2nd,  1864,  amend- 
ing the  act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  Railroad  and 
Telegraph  line  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  etc. 

Jesse  L.  Williams  of  Indiana 
George  Ashmun  of  Massachusetts 
and     Charles  Sherman  of  Ohio 
are  hereby  appointed  directors  on  the  part  of  the  Gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States,  for  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  and  Telegraph  Company,  to  serve  until  the 
next  ensuing  regular  election  of  directors  for  said  Com- 
pany. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

Eight  days  later  this  official  order  was  promulgated : 

Executive  Mansion. 

July  27th,  1864. 

By  virtue  of  the  authority  vested  in  the  President  of 
the  United  States,  by  the  sixth  section  of  an  act  entitled 
An  Act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  aid  in  the 
construction  of  a  Railroad  and  Telegraph  Line  from 
the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  to  secure  to 
the  Government  the  use  of  the  same  for  postal,  military, 
and  other  purposes"  approved  July  2nd,  1864. 

Richard  W.  Thompson,  of  Indiana,  is  hereby  ap- 
pointed a  Commissioner,  to  examine  the  road  or  roads 
authorized  by  said  Acts  to  be  constructed  by  the  "Union 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,"  and  the  "Union  Pacific 
Railroad  Company  Eastern  Division,"  and  make  report 


212      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

to  him  in  relation  thereto  as  contemplated  and  specified 
by  said  Acts. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

While  the  President  had  been  authorized  under  the 
amendatory  act  to  appoint  three  commissioners  for 
each  and  every  one  of  the  roads  mentioned  in  the  orig- 
inal Act,  this  appointment  of  Thompson  is  the  only 
one  of  which  we  have  record  to-day.  It  is  probable  that 
in  the  other  instances  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior 
performed  that  office. 

As  the  election  of  directors  according  to  the  Act  of 
1864  was  to  be  held  on  the  first  Wednesday  of  October, 
the  President  issued  the  following  order: 

Executive  Mansion. 

October  7th,  1864. 

By  virtue  of  the  authority  conferred  upon  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  by  the  thirteenth  section  of 
the  Act  of  Congress  approved  July  2,  1864,  amending 
the  act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  Railroad  and 
Telegraph  line  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  etc. 

Jesse  L.  Williams  of  Indiana 
George  Ashmun  of  Massachusetts 
Charles  T.  Sherman  of  Ohio 
Springer  Harbaugh  of  Pennsylvania 
and     Timothy  J.  Carter  of  Illinois 
are  hereby  appointed  directors  on  the  part  of  the  Gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States,  for  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  and  Telegraph  Company,  to  serve  until  the 
next  ensuing  regular  election  of  the  directors  for  said 
Company,  and  until  their  successors  are  qualified. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     213 

The  next  official  document  on  the  subject  of  which 
we  have  record,  emanating  from  President  Lincoln, 
was  an  endorsement  of  the  permanent  location  of  the 
first  hundred  miles  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  re- 
quested by  the  Vice-president  of  that  road. 

Thos.  C.  Durant,  V.  P.  Union  Pacific  Rail  Road 
Company. 
Secretary's  office,  New  York,  13  Williams  St. 
November  3rd,  1864. 

To  his  Excellency, 
Abm.  Lincoln, 

President  of  United  States. 
Sir, 

I  have  the  honor  to  ask  your  approval  of  the  per- 
manent location  of  the  first  one  hundred  miles  of  the 
Union  Pacific  Rail  Road  as  indicated  by  the  map  for- 
warded to  the  Department  of  the  Interior  on  the  20th 
ulto — 

With  great  respect 
Your  Obt.  Svt. 

Thos.  C.  Durant. 

(Endorsement  on  other  side.) 

Executive  Mansion. 
November  4th,  1864. 

The  permanent  location  of  the  Union  Pacific  Rail- 
road, for  one  hundred  miles  west  from  Omaha,  Ne- 
braska, as  shown  by  the  map  thereof  certified  by  the 
President  and  Secretary  of  said  Company,  Oct.  19, 
1864,  is  hereby  approved. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

In  his  Annual  Message  to  Congress,  transmitted  De- 
cember 6  of  that  year,  President  Lincoln  made  refer- 
ence to  this  location  in  connection  with  his  remarks  on 
the  transcontinental  railroad. 


214      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"The  great  enterprise,"  he  said,  "of  connecting  the 
Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  States  by  railways  and  tele- 
graph lines  has  been  entered  upon  with  a  vigor  that 
gives  assurance  of  success,  notwithstanding  the  em- 
barrassments arising  from  the  prevailing  high  prices  of 
materials  and  labor.  The  route  of  the  main  line  of  the 
road  has  been  definitely  located  for  one  hundred  miles 
westward  from  the  initial  point  at  Omaha  City,  Ne- 
braska, and  a  preliminary  location  of  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road of  California  has  been  made  from  Sacramento, 
eastward,  to  the  great  bend  of  Truckee  River,  in  Ne- 
vada." 

While  there  is  on  file  no  order  from  the  President 
concerning  this  latter  location,  yet  it  may  be  in  refer- 
ence thereto  that  the  following  incident  is  told,  as  it 
appeared  in  a  recent  official  publication  of  the  Union 
Pacific  system. 

"By  the  original  railroad  Act,"  so  runs  the  story, 
"the  President  was  to  fix  the  point  where  the  Sacra- 
mento valley  ended  and  the  foothills  of  the  Sierra 
Madre  began.  The  Chief  Engineer  had  designated  Bar- 
mores,  thirty-one  miles  from  Sacramento  as  the  be- 
ginning of  the  mountains.  The  Supreme  Court  decided 
the  foothills  commenced  at  thirty  miles  from  that  city. 
Several  attempts  were  made  to  bring  this  to  the  atten- 
tion of  President  Lincoln,  but  the  President's  occupa- 
tion with  heavier  duties  connected  with  the  War  pre- 
vented the  action.  The  time  came,  however,  when  it 
could  not  be  longer  delayed.  It  was  important  to  the 
railroad  company  that  the  foothills  should  begin  as 
near  as  possible  to  Sacramento.  Senator  Sargent  claims 
the  credit  of  moving  the  mountain  from  Barmores  to 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    215 

Arcade  Creek,  a  distance  of  twenty-four  miles.  He  re- 
lates the  affairs  as  follows.  Lincoln  was  engaged  with  a 
map  when  the  Senator  substituted  another  and  demon- 
strated by  it  and  the  statement  of  some  geologist  that 
the  black  soil  of  the  valley  and  the  red  soil  of  the  hills 
unite  at  Arcade.  The  President  relied  on  the  state- 
ments given  by  him  and  decided  accordingly.  'Here  you 
see,'  said  the  Senator,  'my  pertinacity  and  Abraham's 
faith   removed   mountains.' " 

A  careful  study  of  the  Act  referred  to,  as  well  as  the 
later  act,  fails  to  locate  any  authority  for  having  the 
President's  approval  necessary  for  such  location.  More- 
over, this  "Senator"  Sargent,  as  he  is  called,  was  not 
a  member  of  the  United  States  Senate  during  this 
period.  Aaron  A.  Sargent  represented  California  in 
the  national  House  of  Representatives  in  the  37th  Con- 
gress, from  1861  to  1863,  and  again  from  1869  to 
1873.  From  1873  to  1879  he  served  in  the  United 
States  Senate.  Therefore,  if  Representative  Sargent 
had  any  official  dealings  with  President  Lincoln  in  rela- 
tion to  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad,  it  must  necessarily 
have  been  before  December  7,  1863,  when  the  first  ses- 
sion of  the  38th  Congress  convened.  The  second  session 
of  the  37th  Congress  terminated  March  4,  1863.  Mr. 
Leonard,  Union  Pacific  historian,  believes  that  the  an- 
ecdote is  "all  a  myth." 

Yet  in  view  of  all  these  circumstances,  the  writer  is 
of  the  opinion  that  President  Lincoln  had  to  do  with 
fixing  a  certain  western  location,  whatever  it  may  have 
been,  and  that  there  are  some  grounds  for  the  story, 
garbled  as  it  must  be.  We  know  that  he  approved  the 
route  of  the  main  line  westward  for  the  first  hundred 


216      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

miles,  which  also  was  not  mentioned  specifically  in 
either  Act,  and  it  is  not  impossible  that  he  had  previ- 
ously been  called  upon  to  decide  a  question  of  location 
for  the  California  line  building  eastward. 

In  response  to  a  communication  from  the  office  of 
the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  in  New  York,  concerning 
a  proper  disposition  of  the  subscription  books  of  their 
company,  the  President  issued  the  following  order : 

By  the  authority  conferred  upon  the  President  of 
the  United  States  by  the  2d  section  of  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress, approved  July  2d,  1864,  entitled  "An  Act  to 
amend  an  Act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  Railroad 
and  Telegraph  Line  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean,"  Etc.,  Etc. 

I,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States, 
do  hereby  designate  the  Merchants'  National  Bank, 
Boston;  the  Chicago  and  Rock  Island  Railroad  Com- 
pany's Office,  Chicago ;  the  First  National  Bank  at 

Philadelphia;  the  First  National  Bank  at  Baltimore; 

the  First  National  Bank  at Cincinnati;  and  the 

First  National  Bank  at  St.  Louis,  in  addition  to  the 
General  Office  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company, 
in  the  City  of  New  York,  as  the  places  at  which  the  said 
Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company  shall  cause  books  to 
be  kept  open  to  receive  subscriptions  to  the  capital 
stock  of  said  Company. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

Washington,  D.  C. 
December  31st,   1864. 

Four  months  and  a  half  later,  the  President  was  as- 
sassinated, and  this  is  the  last  incident  or  order  con- 


JhA. 


Courtesy,    Union    Pacific    Railroad 

OTHER    RARE    RAILROAD    ITEMS 

1.  The  "Lincoln  Car,"  built  for  him  as  President,  but  rarely  used 
by  him.  It  was  later  the  "Funeral  Car/'  which  conveyed  his  body 
to  Springfield.  It  is  now  owned  by  the  Union  Pacific.  2.  Facsimile 
of  Lincoln's  approval  of  the  first  one  hundred  miles  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     217 

necting  him  with  the  Union  Pacific,  of  which  we  have 
record. 

There  is  one  matter,  however,  in  connection  with  the 
part  that  Lincoln  played  in  the  projection  of  this  road 
which  deserves  more  than  passing  mention. 

While  pursuing  our  investigations  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior,  we  were  surprised  to  discover 
that  while  to-day  the  uniform  track  width  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  is  the  standard  gauge  of  four  feet, 
eight  and  one-half  inches,  conforming  to  the  gauge 
of  all  other  standard  American  roads,  yet  there  is  on 
file  in  that  Department  an  order  signed  by  the  Presi- 
dent, fixing  the  gauge  of  that  road  at  five  feet.  The 
order  is  dated  January  21st,  1863.  This  anomolous 
situation  called  for  further  investigation. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  one  of  the  provisions  of  the 
bill  passed  in  1862  provided  that  the  President  should 
determine  the  uniform  width  of  track,  so.  that  when 
completed  cars  could  be  run  from  the  Missouri  River  to 
the  Pacific  Coast.  In  October,  November,  and  Decem- 
ber of  that  year,  many  letters  were  addressed  to  the 
Department  of  the  Interior,  giving  the  views  of  the 
writers  as  to  what  should  be  the  width  of  this  Pacific 
road.  They  are  still  on  file,  the  majority  being  from 
various  railroad  officials  of  the  East  and  Middle  West, 
arguing  for  a  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inch  gauge, 
to  conform  to  the  majority  of  the  roads  east  of  the 
Missouri  River.  As  an  example,  we  append  one  from 
Thomas  A.  Scott,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  writ- 
ten in  the  interim  between  his  two  terms  as  member  of 
President  Lincoln's  Cabinet: 


218      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Vice  President's  Room.  Pennsylvania  Rail  Road  Co. 
No.  238  South  Third  St. 

Philadelphia.  October  30,  1862. 

Hon.  Caleb  B.  Smith, 
Secretary  of  the  Interior. 

Dear  Sir: 

In  reply  to  your  inquiry  of  yesterday,  I  beg  to  say 
that  in  my  opinion  the  proper  gauge  of  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road would  be  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inches,  this 
being  the  gauge  of  all  the  New  England  roads ;  the  New 
York  Central,  the  Pennsylvania  Central,  the  Baltimore 
and  Ohio,  as  also  all  the  roads  leading  westward  from 
Detroit,  Toledo,  Chicago  and  Indianapolis. 

Should  the  Pacific  Railroad  Co.  adopt  four  feet, 
eight  and  one-half  inches  as  the  gauge,  the  effect  would 
be  in  a  very  few  years  to  change  that  on  the  roads  in 
Ohio,  Indiana  and  Illinois  which  now  use  the  gauge  of 
four  feet,  ten  inches,  and  thus  practically  giving  us  a 
uniform  connection  throughout  all  the  free  states,  an 
advantage  to  the  Government,  at  times,  beyond  value. 
The  uniform  gauge  of  five  feet  in  the  Southern  States 
has  proven  to  be  of  great  service  to  the  Rebels  by  giving 
them  the  power  to  concentrate  all  their  Railway  equip- 
ment at  any  given  point. 

The  gauge  of  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inches  is 
deemed  to  be  by  our  best  practical  railway  minds  as 
economical  as  any  other,  and  most  preferable  to  the  six 
feet  gauge,  which  last  requires  extra  heavy  machinery 
and  cars,  causing  a  large  increase  for  maintenance  and 
for  the  movement  of  dead  weight,  which  should  be 
avoided  in  any  case  but  more  particularly  in  the  con- 
struction of  a  line  so  important  to  the  commercial  world 
as  that  of  the  Great  Pacific  Railway. 

I  think  you  should  adopt  the  four  feet,  eight  and  one- 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    219 

half  inch  gauge,  and  hope  that  upon  mature  considera- 
tion it  will  be  done. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

Thomas  A.   Scott, 

Vice-President. 

The  chief  advocates  for  the  broad  gauge,  it  seems, 
came  from  California,  where  the  railroad  promoters 
had  seen  fit  to  decide  upon  a  gauge  of  five  feet,  and  had 
placed  their  contracts  upon  that  basis.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  the  original  act  authorized  the  Cali- 
fornia road  to  build  eastward  until  it  met  the  Union 
Pacific.  This  consideration  undoubtedly  had  its  in- 
fluence on  Lincoln's  decision. 

Hon.  Cornelius  Cole,  but  recently  deceased,  and  up 
to  the  last  retaining  an  unusually  clear  memory  for 
one  of  his  years,  in  a  communication  to  the  writer  in 
1922,  telling  of  his  relations  to  President  Lincoln,  said 
that  the  President  "was  greatly  interested  in  the  Pacific 
Railroad,  and  as  I  was  the  California  member  of  the 
special  committee,  he  conferred  with  me  freely  regard- 
ing it.  As  it  devolved  upon  him  to  fix  the  gauge,  I 
remember  well  his  sending  for  me  to  confer  with  him  on 
this  subject.  I  was  in  favor  of  the  broad  gauge,  and  he 
the  narrower." 

His  attention  being  called  to  the  discrepancy  between 
the  two  gauges,  he  further  said  "my  understanding  and 
recollection  is  that  Mr.  Lincoln  did  not  fix  the  gauge 
while  I  was  present.  And  I  learned  soon  afterwards 
that  he  had  adopted  the  'standard  gauge'  which  I  be- 
lieve was  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inches.  I  suppose 
he  did  this  at  the  request  of  the  railroad  builders.  I 


220      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

don't  know  anything  about  Mr.  Lincoln  fixing  the 
gauge  at  five  feet,  and  I  have  never  heard  of  it  until 
now,  that  I  can  remember." 

We  may  safely  deduce  from  the  above  that  Lincoln's 
feelings  personally  were  for  the  "standard  gauge." 

Walter  B.  Stevens,  the  noted  newspaper  correspond- 
ent, gives  a  story  in  his  "Reporter's  Lincoln"  under 
the  caption  "He  Established  Standard  Gauge,"  which 
must  be  largely  mythical,  although  given  on  the  au- 
thority of  L.  D.  Yager,  an  attorney  of  Alton,  Illinois. 

"When  the  Union  Pacific,  the  first  transcontinental 
railroad  project,  reached  the  stage  of  legislation,  there 
was  necessary,  of  course,  an  enabling  act,"  said  Mr. 
Yager.  "One  branch  of  Congress  insisted  that  the  rails 
should  be  four  feet  and  ten  inches  apart.  The  other 
body  wanted  a  gauge  of  four  feet  and  seven  inches.  On 
an  issue  apparently  so  trivial,  the  Senate  and  House 
took  opposing  sides.  The  question  was  taken  to  the 
White  House  by  interested  parties.  President  Lincoln 
was  asked  to  express  his  opinion  as  to  the  proper  width 
for  a  transcontinental  railroad  track.  He  took  one  and 
one-half  inches  from  the  wider  gauge,  and  added  it  to 
the  narrower  gauge,  making  the  width  four  feet,  eight 
and  one-half  inches.  In  other  words,  he  split  the  differ- 
ence. 

"The  compromise  was  accepted  by  the  law-makers 
and  standard  gauge  was  fixed  thereby.  Other  railroads 
conformed  to  this  government  gauge,  one  after  another, 
until  it  became  the  almost  universal  width  between 
rails." 

Now  this  could  not  have  been  true  while  the  original 
law  was  pending,  and  as  we  shall  see,  the  same  is  true 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     221 

of  the  supplementary  Act,  passed  March,  1863,  fixing 
the  gauge  at  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inches.  And 
in  view  of  our  knowledge  concerning  the  different 
gauges  in  effect  at  that  time,  the  concluding  paragraph 
is  also  impossible. 

At  the  regular  Cabinet  meeting  held  January  20, 
1863,  the  matter  of  the  gauge  was  taken  up,  the  fol- 
lowing being  entered  in  the  "Diary"  of  Gideon  Welles, 
Secretary  of  the  Navy. 

"A  California  committee  was,  on  Tuesday,  before 
the  Cabinet,  relative  to  the  gauge  of  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road. They  gave  their  views — every  one,  I  believe,  in 
favor  of  the  five-feet  gauge.  When  they  left,  the  Presi- 
dent proposed  a  vote  without  discussion — not  that  it 
should  be  conclusive,  but  as  an  expression  of  the  un- 
biased opinion  of  each. 

"I  was,  for  the  present  at  least,  for  four  [feet], 
eight  and  one-half  [inches],  chiefly  for  the  reason  that 
a  change  could  be  made  from  the  wide  to  the  narrow 
at  less  expense  than  the  reverse;  the  aggregate  cost 
will  be  millions  less;  that  usage,  custom,  practical  ex- 
perience, knowledge  proved  the  superiority  of  that 
gauge  if  they  had  proved  anything,  etc.,  etc.  I  believe 
the  majority  were  for  that  gauge." 

Yet  the  following  day  we  find  the  President  issuing 
the  accompanying  order,  fixing  the  gauge  at  five  feet: 

Whereas,  by  the  12th  section  of  an  act  of  Congress, 
entitled  "An  Act  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  Rail- 
road and  Telegraph  Line,  from  the  Missouri  River  to 
the  Pacific  Ocean  and  to  secure  to  the  Government  the 
use  of  the  same,  for  postal,  military,  and  other  Pur- 


%%%      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

poses,"  approved  July  1st,  1862,  it  is  made  the  duty 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  to  de- 
termine the  uniform  width  of  the  track  of  the  entire  line 
of  the  said  railroad  and  the  branches  of  the  same ;  and 
whereas,  application  has  been  made  to  me,  by  the 
Leavenworth,  Pawnee  and  Western  Railroad  Company 
(a  company  authorized  by  the  Act  of  Congress  above 
mentioned  to  construct  a  branch  of  said  railroad)  to  fix 
the  gauge  thereof. 

Now,  therefore,  I,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the 
United  States  of  America,  do  determine  that  the  uni- 
form width  of  the  track  of  said  Railroad  and  all  its 
branches  which  are  provided  for  in  the  aforesaid  Act  of 
Congress,  shall  be  Five  (5)  feet,  and  that  this  order  be 
filed  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  for 
the  information  and  guidance  of  all  concerned. 

Done  at  the  City  of  Washington,  this  21st  day  of 
January,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  sixty  three. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

The  narrow  gauge  advocates  must  have  immediately 
become  active,  for  we  note  that  on  February  2,  Sena- 
tor Robert  Wilson,  of  Missouri,  introduced  a  bill  in 
the  Senate  establishing  the  uniform  width  of  the  Pacific 
Railroad  and  its  branches  at  four  feet,  eight  and  one- 
half  inches.  The  bill  was  introduced  by  unanimous  con- 
sent, read  a  first  and  second  time  to  comply  with  the 
requirements  of  the  Senate,  and  that  same  day  referred 
to  the  select  committee  on  the  Pacific  Railroad.  On  Feb- 
ruary 18,  Senator  James  Harlan,  of  Iowa,  moved  to 
take  up  Senate  Bill  number  483,  as  it  was  known,  which 
was  thereupon  debated  upon. 

The  chief  opposition  to  this  bill  came  from  the  two 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC    223 

Senators  from  California,  Milton  S.  Latham  and  James 
A.  McDougall,  and  in  part  also  from  Senator  Samuel 
C.  Pomeroy,  of  Kansas.  It  will  be  observed  that  the 
broad-gauge  advocates  seemed  to  think  that  one  of 
their  best  arguments  lay  in  the  fact  that  the  President 
had  officially  decided  upon  that  gauge,  "after  mature 
investigation." 

Senator  Latham  in  opening  the  debate,  said  that 
he  had  not  paid  particular  attention  to  the  bill,  leaving 
it  in  charge  of  his  colleague,  but  he  hoped  it  would 
not  become  a  law. 

"By  the  bill  passed  during  the  last  session  of  Con- 
gress," he  said,  "the  power  was  vested  in  the  President 
to  fix  the  gauge  of  the  Pacific  Road.  In  January  he 
called  to  his  assistance  the  most  efficient  and  learned 
men  on  the  question  of  these  railroad  gauges,  and 
after  most  mature  and  deliberate  consideration  fixed  the 
gauge  at  five  feet,  and  made  a  proclamation  to  that  ef- 
fect, and  contracts  have  been  made  for  the  making  of 
the  running  machinery  in  accord  with  this  gauge." 

He  further  stated  that  the  Kansas  road  and  those  in 
his  state,  now  five  feet,  would  have  to  be  changed  at 
great  expense.  Other  arguments  were  cited  which  do 
not  have  to  be  considered  here. 

Senator  Harlan  then  took  up  the  cudgels  for  the  bill, 
and  he  and  Latham  debated  the  matter  of  "tranship- 
ment." *  To-day  it  makes  strange  reading  to  hear  of  a 
United  States  Senator  saying  that  some  transhipment 
would  be  absolutely  necessary  on  the  grounds  of  clean- 
liness, preservation  of  material,  and  other  reasons.  Yet 

i  (By  transhipment  is  meant  the  transference  of  commodities  from 
one  car  or  railroad  to  another.) 


2M     LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

that  is  the  stand  Latham  took,  claiming  he  based  his 
statements  on  the  reports  of  railroad  men. 

Latham  stated  that  there  would  have  to  be  a  tran- 
shipment some  place,  and  it  might  just  as  well  occur 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Mississippi  River  as  at  any 
other.  He  further  claimed  that  it  would  be  utterly  im- 
possible to  carry  troops  from  the  Mississippi  Valley  to 
the  Pacific  Coast  without  a  transhipment. 

Harlan  contended  that  transhipment  was  merely  a 
convenience. 

"This  gauge  has  been  fixed,"  said  Latham,  "by  the 
only  competent  authority  that  could  fix  it,  having  in 
view  all  the  interests  concerned  and  to  be  affected  by  it. 
At  the  last  session,  we,  by  our  vote,  gave  to  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  the  power  to  settle  this  ques- 
tion, and  he  has  taken  it  upon  himself  after  mature 
investigation  and  consultation  with  railroad  men  and 
those  whose  interests  were  to  be  affected,  to  fix  this 
gauge  at  five  feet." 

After  some  further  lively  debate  the  roll  was  called, 
and  the  bill  in  favor  of  the  narrower  gauge  passed  by 
a  vote  of  twenty-six  to  nine. 

It  is  interesting  to  note,  in  passing,  that  of  the  nine 
votes  recorded  against  it,  but  three  were  from  states 
east  of  the  Mississippi,  those  of  Fessenden  of  Maine, 
Hicks  of  Maryland,  and  King  of  New  York.  Both  of 
the  California  Senators,  Senators  Harding  and  Nes- 
mith  of  Oregon,  Henderson  of  Missouri  and  Lane  of 
Kansas  recorded  their  disapproval  of  the  bill.  Senator 
Fessenden  was  afterwards  appointed  by  President  Lin- 
coln to  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  upon  the 
resignation  of  Salmon  P.  Chase. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  UNION  PACIFIC     225 

On  March  2,  the  House  passed  the  bill  without  de- 
bate in  the  closing  proceedings  of  that  session  of  Con- 
gress, and  the  following  day  it  was  signed  by  Speaker 
Galusha  A.  Grow,  of  Pennsylvania.  On  the  latter  date 
also,  President  Lincoln  affixed  his  signature  to  this 
bill  along  with  the  usual  large  number  awaiting  action 
at  the  end  of  a  Congress. 

This  is  the  bill  in  its  entirety : 

An  Act  to  Establish  the  Gauge  of  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road and  its  Branches. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives of  the  United  States  of  America  in  Congress 
assembled, 

That  the  gauge  of  the  Pacific  Railroad  and  its 
branches  throughout  their  whole  extent,  from  the  Pa- 
cific Coast  to  the  Missouri  River,  shall  be,  and  hereby 
is,  established  at  four  feet,  eight  and  one-half  inches. 

Approved  March  3,  .1863. 

The  evidence  is  all  in,  so  far  as  we  are  able  to  gather. 
It  is  an  interesting  matter  of  conjecture  what  the  inner 
forces  working  around  the  President  were,  causing  him 
to  fix  upon  a  five  feet  gauge,  when  the  preponderance 
of  opinion,  including  his  own,  was  for  the  narrower; 
and  that  he  was  compelled  to  reverse  himself  by  sign- 
ing a  bill,  one  month  later,  which  necessitated  a  right- 
about-face movement  on  his  part. 


CHAPTER   XX 

PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS 

When  Abraham  Lincoln  came  to  Washington  as 
President,  in  1861,  the  street  railway  had  not  yet  made 
its  appearance  in  that  city.  Its  introduction  the  follow- 
ing year  was,  as  one  writer  says,  "in  itself  an  innova- 
tion." In  the  Fifties  and  early  Sixties  the  omnibus  was 
in  its  heyday,  and  the  older  residents  seemed  slow  to 
take  to  the  new  order  of  things. 

It  is  certain  that  President  Lincoln  made  but  little 
use,  if  any,  of  this  new  method  of  municipal  transpor- 
tation, using  saddle-horse  or  carriage  for  his  many 
local  and  near-by  journey ings.  When  he  visited  the 
armies  in  the  field,  water  transportation  was  used  in 
most  instances. 

We  have  no  record  of  him  straying  very  far  from 
Washington  in  the  year  1861,  save  that  he  did  consid- 
erable driving  around  to  the  neighboring  forts  and 
armies. 

On  the  evening  of  May  5,  1862,  with  other  digni- 
taries, including  Secretaries  Stanton  and  Chase,  he  left 
Washington  by  boat  for  a  visit  of  several  days  to  Fort 
Monroe.  Due  to  the  elements,  the  party  did  not  reach 
their  destination  until  the  following  night.  The  next 
day  the  President  witnessed  a  naval  engagement,  and 
during  his  sojourn  at  the  Fort  the  city  of  Norfolk  was 
captured  by  the  Union  forces.  The  boat  started  on  the 
return  trip  the  evening  of  the  11th. 

220 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS    227 

On  the  23rd  Lincoln  paid  a  visit  to  General  Mc- 
Dowell's headquarters  at  the  Lacy  House  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Rappanhannock  River,  no  doubt  going  and 
returning  by  boat. 

On  June  24  he  made  a  hurried  trip  by  gunboat  from 
Washington  to  West  Point,  where  he  had  a  consulta- 
tion with  the  venerable  General  Winfield  Scott,  then  liv- 
ing in  retirement. 

In  the  beginning  of  July,  the  Army  of  the  Potomac, 
encamped  along  the  James  River,  was  visited,  Harri- 
son's Landing  being  reached  on  the  8th.  The  following 
morning  the  President  left  for  home,  after  having  con- 
sulted with  General  McClellan  and  his  staff  as  to  the 
status  of  military  affairs.  This  trip  likewise  was  un- 
doubtedly made  by  boat. 

Probably  on  the  last  day  of  September,  shortly  after 
the  Battle  of  Antietam  had  been  fought,  President 
Lincoln  again  left  Washington  for  McClellan's  head- 
quarters, in  order  to  get  some  firsthand  information  as 
to  why  the  Federal  forces  had  not  followed  up  their 
advantage.  The  Army  of  the  Potomac  was  now  quar- 
tered along  the  Potomac  River,  nearer  Washington, 
such  a  change  having  been  deemed  advisable.  Lincoln 
arrived  at  Harper's  Ferry  on  the  first  of  October;  by 
what  means  we  know  not.  He  may  have  come  by  rail 
over  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad,  at  least  part 
way. 

He  stayed  in  the  vicinity  of  Harper's  Ferry  until  the 
morning  of  the  4th,  when  he  left  for  Frederick,  Mary- 
land. During  his  visit  he  had  many  rides  and  consulta- 
tions with  the  commanding  general,  reviewing  the 
troops,  visiting  the  different  encampments,   and  go- 


228      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

ing  over  the  battlefields  of  South  Mountain  and  An- 
tietam. 

General  O.  O.  Howard  relates  this  anecdote  as  oc- 
curring during  one  of  the  reviews : 

"As  the  generals  and  handsome  staff  officers  escorted 
the  President  near  to  my  front  I  joined  the  reviewing 
party.  Mr.  Lincoln  rode  along  in  silence,  returning  the 
salutes.  .  .  .  Suddenly  we  saw  a  little  engine  named 
'The  Fying  Dutchman'  fly  past  us  on  a  railroad  track. 
Mr.  Lincoln  seeing  it  and  hearing  a  shrill,  wild  scream 
from  its  saluting  whistle,  laughed  aloud.  He  doubtless 
was  thinking  of  John  Brown's  terrorism  of  a  few  years 
before,  for  we  were  near  the  famous  engine-house  where 
John  Brown  was  finally  penned  up  and  made  prisoner ; 
for,  referring  to  the  locomotive,  Mr.  Lincoln  said: 
'They  ought  to  call  that  thing  "The  Skeared  Vir- 
ginian." '  " 

In  November,  General  A.  E.  Burnside  replaced  Mc- 
Clellan  as  head  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  It  was  his 
plan  to  move  the  army  southward  with  Fredericksburg 
as  the  objective,  from  which  point  he  intended  to  press 
towards  Richmond.  As  the  army  lay  along  the  north 
bank  of  the  Rappahannock  River,  it  faced  that  of  Lee, 
at  Fredericksburg  along  the  south  bank. 

On  the  27th  of  the  month,  the  President,  in  the 
steamer  Baltimore,  went  down  the  Potomac  as  far  as 
Aquia  Creek,  where  he  and  Burnside  had  a  lengthy  con- 
sultation. Lincoln  thought  that  the  plans  of  his  new 
commander  as  outlined  were  too  hazardous,  and  formu- 
lated a  set  of  his  own.  Exception  being  taken  to  these 
by  both  Burnside  and  Halleck,  the  President  allowed 
himself  to  be  overruled. 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     229 

After  the  terrible  repulse  of  Burnside,  in  December 
at  Fredericksburg,  General  Joseph  Hooker  was  placed 
in  command  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  From  that 
time  until  spring  he  devoted  his  energies  to  whipping 
the  army  into  shape  for  a  new  trial  of  strength  with 
Lee,  who  was  still  camped  at  Fredericksburg,  where 
Burnside  had  failed  to  dislodge  him. 

It  was  the  intention  that  President  Lincoln  should 
review  the  various  encampments  preliminary  to  the  en- 
gagement, and  on  April  4,  1863,  he  embarked  on  the 
river  steamer  Carrie  Martin  from  the  Washington  Navy 
Yard,  bound  for  Falmouth,  General  Hooker's  head- 
quarters. 

A  severe  snowstorm  set  in  shortly  after  leaving  Wash- 
ington, which  rendered  navigation  so  difficult  that  the 
party  had  to  anchor  for  the  night  in  a  small  cove  on 
the  Virginia  shore  of  the  Potomac,  opposite  Indian 
Head,  Maryland. 

The  next  morning  the  little  steamer  reached  the  land- 
ing place  called  "The  Creek"  on  Aquia  Creek,  where 
the  party  disembarked  with  the  snow-fall  unabated. 

Brooks,  the  newspaper  correspondent,  accompanied 
the  party  as  a  friend  of  the  President,  and  describes 
this  port  as  a  "village  of  hastily  constructed  ware- 
houses," with  "its  water  front  lined  with  transports  and 
government  steamers.  Enormous  freight-trains  were 
continually  running  from  it  to  the  army  encamped 
among  the  hills  of  Virginia  lying  between  the  Rappa- 
hannock and  the  Potomac.  As  there  were  60,000  horses 
and  mules  to  be  fed  in  the  army,  the  single  item  of  daily 
forage  was  a  considerable  factor  in  the  problem  of 
transportation." 


230      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

At  Aquia  Creek  elaborate  railroad  facilities  had  been 
provided  to  take  the  distinguished  party  inland. 

"The  President  and  his  party,"  says  Brooks,  "were 
provided  with  an  ordinary  freight  car,  fitted  up  with 
rough  plank  benches,  and  profusely  decorated  with  flags 
and  bunting.  A  great  crowd  of  army  people  saluted  the 
President  with  cheers  when  he  landed  from  the  steamer, 
and  with  'three  times  three'  when  his  unpretentious  rail- 
road carriage  rolled  away." 

This  road,  then  in  possession  of  the  Union  forces,  was 
what  was  known  as  the  Aquia  Creek  Railroad,  in  opera- 
tion since  1842  from  Fredericksburg  to  Aquia  Creek, 
constructed  by  the  old  Richmond,  Fredericksburg  and 
Potomac  Railroad  Company.  It  was  several  times  de- 
stroyed and  rebuilt  during  the  War. 

The  President  remained  with  the  army  about  a  week, 
reviewing  the  different  divisions,  which  made  an  excel- 
lent showing,  but  he  was  rather  disheartened  at  the 
over-confidence  of  Hooker. 

How  well  this  apprehension  was  justified  is  shown 
by  the  defeat  three  weeks  later  at  Chancellorsville, 
when  Lee  again  routed  the  Federal  forces.  The  news 
of  this  latter  repulse  reached  Lincoln  on  the  afternoon 
of  May  6,  and  he  immediately  got  into  action. 

At  four  o'clock  that  same  afternoon  he  and  General 
Halleck  having  boarded  a  steamer  ordered  for  the  pur- 
pose, left  Washington  for  the  headquarters  of  the  de- 
feated Hooker.  Arriving  there,  he  gathered  the  details 
for  himself,  and  immediately  formulated  plans  for  the 
next  campaign.  On  this  occasion  President  Lincoln 
probably  stayed  but  a  day  or  two. 

The  next  journey  of  which  we  have  record,  was  the 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     231 

trip  taken  to  the  battlefield  of  Gettysburg,  in  November 
of  that  year,  treated  separately  in  another  chapter. 

On  April  14,  1864,  Lincoln  delivered  an  address  at 
the  Sanitary  Fair  held  in  Baltimore,  coming  and  going 
by  way  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad.  This  Fair 
was  for  the  purpose  of  raising  money  for  the  United 
States  Sanitary  Commission,  corresponding  to  our 
modern  Red  Cross.  While  at  Baltimore,  President 
Lincoln  remained  at  least  over  one  night,  staying  at  a 
private  residence. 

On  June  16  he  spoke  at  a  similar  affair  in  Philadel- 
phia, necessarily  using  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  as  far  as 
Baltimore,  thence  going  by  the  Philadelphia,  Wilming- 
ton and  Baltimore  road. 

Some  months  later  in  conversing  with  two  ladies  who 
had  requested  his  presence  at  another  Sanitary  Fair  to 
be  held  in  Chicago,  he  gave  a  rather  humorous  account 
of  his  visit  to  the  Quaker  City.  The  interview  occurred 
only  about  five  weeks  before  his  assassination. 

He  started  in  by  saying  that  he  did  not  know  whether 
he  wanted  to  attend  any  more  of  those  big  Fairs,  and 
then  added:  "Why,  I  was  nearly  pulled  to  pieces  be- 
fore I  reached  Philadelphia.  The  train  stopped  at  every 
station  on  the  route,  and  at  many  places  where  there 
were  no  stations,  only  people ;  and  my  hand  was  nearly 
wrung  off  before  I  reached  the  Fair.  Then  from  the 
depot  for  two  miles  it  was  a  solid  mass  of  people  block- 
ing the  way.  Everywhere  there  were  people  shouting 
and  cheering;  and  they  would  reach  into  the  carriage 
and  shake  hands,  and  hold  on,  until  I  was  afraid  they 
would  be  killed,  or  I  pulled  from  the  carriage. 

"When  we  reached  the  Fair  it  was  worse  yet.  The 


232      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

police  tried  to  open  a  way  through  the  crowds  for  me, 
but  they  had  to  give  it  up ;  and  I  didn't  know  as  I  was 
going  to  get  in  at  all.  The  people  were  everywhere ;  and, 
if  they  saw  me  starting  for  a  place,  they  rushed  there 
first,  and  stood  shouting,  hurrahing,  and  trying  to 
shake  hands.  By  and  by  the  Committee  had  worried  me 
along  to  a  side  door,  which  they  suddenly  opened, 
pushed  me  in,  and  then  turned  the  key ;  and  that  gave 
me  a  chance  to  lunch,  shake  myself,  and  draw  a  long 
breath. 

"That  was  the  only  quiet  moment  I  had ;  for  all  the 
time  I  was  in  Philadelphia  I  was  crowded,  and  jostled, 
and  pulled  about,  and  cheered,  and  serenaded,  until  I 
was  more  used  up  than  I  ever  remember  to  have  been  in 
my  life.  I  don't  believe  I  could  stand  another  Fair." 

Before  they  left,  however,  the  ladies  had  secured  the 
President's  promise  to  be  present  at  the  Fair  to  be  held 
in  the  Northwest. 

Four  days  after  his  appearance  at  the  Fair  in  Phila- 
delphia, we  find  President  Lincoln  leaving  Washington 
at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  again  bound  for  Army 
headquarters.  But  this  time,  although  at  a  period  of 
great  anxiety,  he  must  have  nevertheless  been  far  more 
light-hearted  than  on  any  of  his  previous  excursions, 
for  he  was  now  going  to  confer  at  last  with  a  man  in 
whom  he  had  absolute  confidence,  General  U.  S.  Grant, 
in  supreme  command  of  the  Union  forces.  Grant's  head- 
quarters at  City  Point,  up  the  James  River,  were 
reached  the  next  day,  the  President  having  had  a  rough 
voyage  on  the  way  down.  He  stayed  but  a  day  or  two, 
reviewing  the  troops  and  conversing  with  the  officers. 

Lincoln's  Secretary  of  the  Navy  meeting  him  at  a 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     233 

Cabinet  meeting  upon  his  return  home,  noted  in  his 
diary  that  "the  President  was  in  very  good  spirits.  His 
journey  has  done  him  good,  physically,  and  strength- 
ened him  mentally,  and  inspired  confidence  in  the  Gen- 
eral and  army." 

It  was  this  same  Cabinet  officer,  who  a  few  days  be- 
fore when  the  President  left  Washington,  had  frowned 
upon  the  expedition,  setting  down  his  view  thus : 

"This  step  ...  I  do  not  approve.  It  has  been  my 
policy  to  discourage  these  presidential  excursions. 
Some  of  the  Cabinet  favored  them.  Stanton  and  Chase, 
I  think,  have  given  them  countenance  heretofore. 

"He  can  do  no  good.  It  can  hardly  be  otherwise  than 
harmful,  even  if  no  accident  befalls  him.  Better  for 
him  and  the  country  that  he  should  remain  at  his  post 
here.  It  would  be  advantageous  if  he  remained  away 
from  the  War  Department  and  required  his  Cabinet  to 
come  to  him." 

On  July  30,  the  President  went  to  Fort  Monroe  for 
another  consultation  with  General  Grant.  It  was  evi- 
dently of  short  duration  for  he  was  home  the  following 
day.  This  trip,  presumably,  was  also  made  by  water. 

On  February  2  of  the  following  year  we  find  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  again  repairing  to  this  fortress,  preceded 
a  day  by  Secretary  of  State  Seward,  this  time  for  the 
purpose  of  attending  a  conference  with  three  Con- 
federate Commissioners  with  the  avowed  purpose  of  a 
cessation  of  hostilities.  On  the  morning  of  the  3rd  a 
meeting  was  held  in  the  cabin  of  the  transport,  River 
Queen,  which,  however,  as  is  well  known,  was  devoid  of 
results. 

The  return  trip  was  made  partly  by  water  and 


234      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

partly  by  rail,  in  the  same  manner  as  they  had  gone  to 
Hampton  Roads.  The  transport  proceeded  up  the  Ches- 
apeake Bay  to  Annapolis,  where  the  party  disem- 
barked. Here  a  special  engine  and  car  had  been  pro- 
vided by  Secretary  Stanton. 

From  Annapolis  to  Annapolis  Junction,  the  old 
Annapolis  and  Elkridge  Railroad,  repaired  by  Gen- 
eral Butler  in  1861,  was  used,  and  from  the  latter 
point  into  Washington,  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio. 

An  incident  that  occurred  while  the  party  was  wait- 
ing for  the  train  to  pull  out  of  Annapolis  was  related 
many  years  later  to  David  Homer  Bates,  one  of  the 
War  Department  telegraph  operators,  by  Major 
Thomas  T.  Eckert,  his  chief  in  the  old  days.  Major 
Eckert  had  preceded  both  Seward  and  Lincoln  in  open- 
ing negotiations  with  the  Confederate  Commissioners 
as  a  sort  of  personal  representative  of  the  President, 
and  was  well  thought  of  by  Lincoln. 

"When  they  [the  President's  party]  reached  the  old 
railroad  station,"  says  Bates,  "the  platform  was 
crowded  with  people  all  eager  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the 
President.  In  the  crowd  there  were  many  newspaper  re- 
porters interested  in  obtaining  definite  news,  or  even  a 
hint,  from  Lincoln,  Seward,  or  Eckert,  as  to  the  outcome 
of  the  momentous  meeting.  On  the  platform  Eckert 
recognized  an  acquaintance,  who  managed  to  draw  him 
aside,  and,  in  a  hurried  conversation,  which  he  said  must 
be  strictly  confidential,  asked  him  for  the  result  of  the 
conference,  at  the  same  time  placing  in  his  hand  an  en- 
velope, saying  that  the  contents  would  recompense  him 
for  his  trouble. 

"After  some  parleying,  Eckert  returned  to  the  car, 


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PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     235 

and  in  Lincoln's  presence  opened  the  envelope  and 
showed  him  a  certified  check  for  $100,000,  telling  him 
how  it  came  into  his  hands.  Lincoln  asked  who  gave  it 
to  him.  Eckert  replied :  'I  am  not  at  liberty  to  say,  but 
when  the  train  is  ready  to  leave,  I  will  be  on  the  plat- 
form, and  hand  the  envelope  to  the  man  from  whom  I 
received  it,  so  that  you  can  see  who  he  is.'  This  was 
done,  Eckert  telling  the  man  that  he  was  obliged  to 
decline  the  offer,  and  could  give  him  no  news  of  the 
conference.  Lincoln  saw  the  transaction,  and  recog- 
nized the  man  as  one  prominent  in  political  affairs,  and 
who  had  held  a  responsible  position  in  one  of  the  West- 
ern states. 

"Upon  returning  to  the  car,  Lincoln  remained  silent 
for  a  long  time,  but  afterward,  when  he  and  Eckert 
could  converse  together  without  attracting  Seward's 
special  attention,  or  that  of  Robert  S.  Chew,  his  private 
secretary,  it  was  agreed  that  neither  should  disclose  the 
incident  to  any  one  excepting  only  Secretary  Stanton, 
Eckert  contending  that  the  effect  on  public  opinion 
generally,  and  especially  as  it  related  to  the  Adminis- 
tration, of  an  announcement  of  such  an  offer  having 
been  made,  would  be  very  injurious  at  a  time  of  such 
extreme  tension,  and  that  if  the  public  were  to  learn  of 
the  failure  of  the  Peace  Conference,  without  at  the  same 
time  receiving  Lincoln's  own  clear  explanation,  they 
would  be  inclined  to  criticize  him  for  having  once  more 
defeated  possibly  well-meant  efforts  to  bring  the  war  to 
an  end." 

It  was  the  morning  of  the  4th  when  the  party  arrived 
home. 

We  have  but  one  more  excursion  of  President  Lincoln 


236      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

to  consider,  during  which  he  was  away  from  Washing- 
ton for  a  longer  period  of  time  than  any  other.  While 
this  trip  was  necessarily  more  or  less  of  a  business 
nature,  yet  it  was  the  nearest  approach  to  a  vacation 
which  Abraham  Lincoln  had  during  his  incumbency  of 
the  Presidential  chair,  and  we  therefore  propose  to 
treat  of  it  in  detail. 

On  March  20  General  Grant  telegraphed  from  his 
headquarters  to  President  Lincoln :  "Can  you  not  visit 
City  Point  for  a  day  or  two  ?  I  would  like  very  much  to 
see  you,  and  I  think  the  rest  would  do  you  good." 

That  same  day  Grant  received  the  following  reply: 
"Your  kind  invitation  received.  Had  already  thought  of 
going  immediately  after  the  next  rain.  Will  go  sooner 
if  any  reason  for  it.  Mrs.  Lincoln  and  a  few  others  will 
probably  accompany  me.  Will  notify  you  of  exact  time, 
once  it  shall  be  fixed  upon." 

On  the  23rd  the  following  supplementary  message 
was  sent,  and  the  party  embarked  on  the  River  Queen: 
"We  start  to  you  at  1  p.  m.  to-day.  May  lie  over  during 
the  dark  hours  of  the  night.  Very  small  party  of  us. 
A.  Lincoln." 

The  following  day  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening 
the  transport  arrived  at  City  Point,  and  after  a  warm 
exchange  of  greetings  with  General  Grant  and  some  of 
his  staff,  the  presidential  party  retired  to  their  rooms 
on  board  the  vessel,  as  they  were  fatigued  from  the 
voyage. 

While  at  breakfast  the  next  morning,  news  of  an  en- 
gagement near  the  front  was  brought,  and  later  learn- 
ing that  the  Union  forces  had  been  successful,  the 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     237 

President    determined    to    visit    the    scene    of    action. 

Captain  Barnes  of  the  Navy,  who  as  commander  of 
the  gunboat  Bat  acting  as  convoy  to  the  River  Queen, 
had  been  ordered  by  the  Department  to  place  himself 
under  the  immediate  directions  of  President  Lincoln, 
and  who  was  charged  with  his  safe  return  to  Washing- 
ton, says  in  describing  this  little  jaunt : 

"A  special  train  was  made  up  about  noontime,  and 
with  a  large  party,  we  slowly  proceeded  over  the  Mili- 
tary Railroad,  roughly  constructed  between  City 
Point  and  the  front,  to  General  Meade's  headquarters. 
On  our  arrival  there,  and  indeed  before  we  reached 
the  scene,  while  we  were  passing  through  a  portion  of 
the  field  of  battle,  the  very  serious  nature  of  the  con- 
flict of  that  morning  was  apparent. 

"The  Confederates  under  General  Gordon,  at  early 
daylight,  had  made  a  swift  and  sudden  assault  upon  our 
lines  of  investment  of  Petersburg,  had  captured  Fort 
Stedman  and  several  other  batteries,  with  many  per- 
sons, including  a  general  officer,  and  driven  our  men 
back  close  to  and  over  the  railroad  embankment  upon 
which  our  train  was  then  halted.  The  ground  immedi- 
ately about  us  was  still  strewn  with  dead  and  wounded 
men,  Federal  and  Confederate.  The  whole  army  was  un- 
der arms  and  moving  to  the  left,  where  the  fight  was 
still  going  on,  and  a  desultory  firing  of  both  musketry 
and  artillery  was  seen  and  heard." 

The  President,  escorted  by  General  Meade,  both  on 
horseback,  rode  over  the  ground,  witnessing  the  har- 
rowing scenes  always  attendant  after  a  military  con- 
flict, the  cries  and  groans  of  the  wounded  and  dying, 


238      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

the  heaps  of  dead  lying  around,  the  gruesome  work  of 
the  burial  parties.  This  naturally  had  its  effect  upon  the 
sympathetic  Lincoln. 

"Once  again  on  the  train,"  narrates  Barnes,  "to 
which  cars  filled  with  our  wounded  men  had  been  at- 
tached, Mr.  Lincoln  looked  worn  and  haggard.  He  re- 
marked that  he  had  seen  enough  of  the  horrors  of  war, 
that  he  hoped  this  was  the  beginning  of  the  end,  and 
that  there  would  be  no  more  bloodshed  or  ruin  of 
homes." 

The  return  movement  of  the  train  to  City  Point  was 
slow,  and  due  to  his  late  experiences,  the  President  re- 
tired to  the  River  Queen  for  the  rest  of  the  day  with 
his  family,  declining  Grant's  invitation  to  supper  at  his 
headquarters.  The  night  was  spent  aboard  the  boat. 

The  next  morning  as  Lincoln  sauntered  into  the  tent 
of  the  telegraph  operators  connected  with  the  army  at 
City  Point,  he  pulled  a  telegram  from  his  pocket  and 
smiled  at  the  officers  sitting  there. 

"The  serious  Stanton  is  actually  becoming  face- 
tious," he  said.  "Just  listen  to  what  he  says  in  his  des- 
patch : 

"  'Your  telegram  and  Parke's  report  of  the  scrim- 
mage of  this  morning  are  received.  The  rebel  rooster 
looks  a  little  the  worse,  as  he  could  not  hold  the  fence. 
We  have  nothing  new  here.  Now  you  are  away,  every- 
thing is  quiet  and  the  tormentor's  vanished.  I  hope  you 
will  remember  General  Harrison's  advice  to  his  men 
at  Tippecanoe,  that  they  can  "see  as  well  a  little 
farther  off."  '  " 

Meanwhile  at  Washington,  just  about  this  time,  the 
Secretary  of  War  was  remarking  in  the  presence  of  two 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     239 

other  Cabinet  officers,  "that  it  was  quite  as  pleasant  to 
have  the  President  away,  that  he  [Stanton]  was  much 
less  annoyed."  To  which  sally  neither  of  the  others 
responded. 

Secretary  Welles,  who  formerly  had  frowned  upon 
these  "presidential  excursions,"  now  seems  rather  in- 
clined to  condone  Lincoln's  latest  offense.  The  day  that 
the  President  left  Washington  we  find  he  noted  in  his 
diary : 

"The  President  has  gone  to  the  front ;  partly  to  get 
rid  of  the  throng  that  is  pressing  upon  him,  though 
there  are  speculations  of  a  different  character.  He 
makes  his  office  much  more  laborious  than  he  should. 
Does  not  generalize  and  takes  upon  himself  questions 
that  properly  belong  to  the  Departments,  often  caus- 
ing derangement  and  irregularity.  The  more  he  yields, 
the  greater  the  pressure  upon  him.  It  has  now  become 
such  that  he  is  compelled  to  flee.  There  is  no  doubt  he 
is  much  worn  down;  besides  he  wished  the  war  termi- 
nated, and,  to  this  end,  that  severe  terms  shall  not  be 
exacted  on  the  rebels." 

Later  on  the  26th  there  was  to  be  a  review  of  that 
portion  of  the  Army  of  the  James  encamped  on  the 
north  side  of  the  James  River,  and  the  President  and 
party  left  City  Point  in  their  boat  about  eleven  o'clock 
that  morning. 

After  the  ceremonies,  the  boat  returned,  reaching 
City  Point  about  dark.  That  evening  a  band  was 
brought  aboard  and  dancing  was  indulged  in  by  some 
of  the  party;  however,  neither  President  Lincoln  nor 
General  Grant  joined  in  this  diversion,  but  sat  confer- 
ring together. 


240      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

The  next  morning  Lincoln  spent  ashore  at  Grant's 
headquarters,  listening  to  the  conversation  about  him. 
According  to  the  opinions  expressed  by  the  officers,  the 
fall  of  Petersburg  was  imminent  and  that  of  Richmond 
would  of  necessity  follow. 

The  afternoon  was  given  over  to  an  excursion  to  what 
was  called  the  Point  of  Rocks,  on  the  Appomattox 
River,  rendered  historical  as  the  spot  where  Pocahontas 
had  saved  the  life  of  Captain  John  Smith. 

That  evening  General  Sherman,  who  had  detached 
himself  from  his  army,  arrived,  and  paid  his  respects 
to  the  President. 

On  the  following  day,  the  28th,  occurred  the  famous 
conference  in  the  cabin  of  the  River  Queen,  partici- 
pated in  by  President  Lincoln,  Generals  Grant  and 
Sherman,  and  Admiral  Porter. 

The  plans  of  the  army  were  given  in  detail  to  the 
President  by  Grant  and  Sherman.  He  listened  care- 
fully and  expressed  a  desire  to  act  leniently  toward  the 
vanquished  enemy,  exclaiming  again  and  again  against 
any  more  bloodshed,  when  in  the  opinion  of  both  gen- 
erals the  possibility  of  one  more  bloody  battle  was  ap- 
parent. 

General  Grant  explained  that  Sheridan  at  that  time 
was  preparing  to  strike  the  South  Side  and  Danville 
Railroads  with  his  magnificent  cavalry  force. 

The  South  Side  Railroad  was  a  road  then  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-three  miles  in  length,  extending  from 
Petersburg  to  Lynchburg,  Virginia,  and  had  been  in 
operation  for  about  ten  years.  It  is  now  a  part  of  the 
Norfolk  and  Western  Railway. 

The  Danville  road  was   evidently  what  was  then 


Courtesy 


PHOTOGRAPHS    OF    LINCOLN 


1.   One  of  the  last  portraits  of  Lincoln;  taken  within  the  week  of  his 
assassination.  2.    Portrait  taken  early  in  1861. 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     241 

corporately  known  as  the  Richmond  and  Danville  Rail- 
road, extending  from  Richmond  to  Danville,  Virginia, 
a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  forty  miles.  It  is  now 
part  of  the  Southern  Railway  system. 

When  Sherman  had  stated  his  plans,  outlining  the 
relative  positions  of  his  army  and  that  of  General 
Joseph  E.  Johnston,  against  whom  he  was  pitted, 
Lincoln  mentioned  the  possibility  of  the  Confederate 
army  escaping  south  again  by  making  use  of  the  rail- 
roads, and  that  then  the  chase  would  have  to  be  begun 
again. 

Sherman,  however,  contended  that  this  was  imprac- 
ticable. "I  have  him,"  he  said,  "where  he  cannot  move 
without  breaking  up  his  army,  which,  once  disbanded, 
can  never  again  be  gotten  together:  and  I  have  de- 
stroyed the  Southern  railroads,  so  that  they  cannot  be 
used  again  for  a  long  time." 

"What  is  to  prevent  their  laying  the  rails  again?" 
Grant  asked. 

"My  'bummers'  don't  do  things  by  halves,"  Sherman 
replied.  "Every  rail,  after  having  been  placed  over 
a  hot  fire,  has  been  twisted  as  crooked  as  a  ram's-horn, 
and  they  never  can  be  used  again." 

The  roads  to  which  General  Sherman  was  paying  his 
respects  were  then  known  as  the  Macon  and  Western 
Railroad,  extending  from  Atlanta  to  Macon,  Georgia, 
a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  five  miles,  and  the  Central 
Railroad  and  Ranking  Company  of  Georgia,  running 
from  Macon  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  one  hundred  and 
ninety  miles  in  length.  These  roads  are  now  both  a  part 
of  the  Central  of  Georgia  Railway. 

In  a  recent  communication,  President  Winburn  of 


24$      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

the  Central  of  Georgia  says:  "It  may  interest  you  to 
know  that  the  line  of  the  Central  Railroad  and  Banking 
Company  of  Georgia  from  Macon  to  Savannah  was 
completely  destroyed  during  the  latter  part  of  1864  by 
General  Sherman  in  his  march  from  Atlanta  to  the 
sea.  The  rails  were  removed,  station  buildings,  water- 
tanks,  and  any  other  transportation  adjunct  that  would 
burn  went  the  way  of  the  torch.  Many  of  the  locomo- 
tives and  cars  were  burned  all  along  the  line." 

It  had  been  decided  that  Grant's  headquarters  should 
be  moved  nearer  to  the  Petersburg  front,  and  the  fol- 
lowing morning  about  half  past  eight  o'clock  the  Presi- 
dent came  ashore  to  bid  the  General  and  staff  good-by. 
They  were  to  go  by  way  of  the  military  railroad  to  the 
terminus  near  Petersburg,  and  Lincoln  accompanied 
the  party  to  the  station.  When  the  train  was  ready  to 
pull  out,  he  was  almost  overcome  with  emotion.  Shaking 
the  officers  by  the  hand,  and  returning  their  salutes,  he 
said: 

"Good-by,  gentlemen.  God  bless  you  all !  Remember, 
your  success  is  my  success." 

After  this  departure,  President  Lincoln  spent  the 
next  several  days  in  quarters  provided  for  him  on  Ad- 
miral Porter's  flagship,  Malvern. 

On  April  2  he  received  a  telegram  from  Grant  to  the 
effect  that  Petersburg  was  "completely  enveloped  from 
river  below  to  river  above"  and  suggesting  that  the 
President  come  to  see  him  on  the  morrow.  The  next 
morning  another  telegram  was  received  stating  that 
Petersburg  was  evacuated,  and  Lincoln  determined  to 
go  to  that  point  at  once.  A  train  was  made  up,  and  the 
celerity  with  which  this  was  done  may  be  imagined  when 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     243 

we  learn  that  it  consisted,  in  addition  to  the  engine,  of  a 
single  car. 

One  of  the  party,  a  French  marquis,  has  left  his  rec- 
ollections of  this  little  journey  by  rail.  "Our  car,"  he 
says,  "was  an  ordinary  American  car,  and  we  took  seats 
in  its  center,  grouping  ourselves  around  Mr.  Lincoln. 
In  spite  of  the  car's  being  devoted  to  Mr.  Lincoln's 
special  use,  several  officers  also  took  their  places  in  it 
without  attracting  any  remark.  Curiosity,  it  seems,  also 
had  induced  the  negro  waiters  of  the  River  Queen  to 
accompany  us.  The  President,  who  was  blinded  by  no 
prejudices  against  race  or  color,  and  who  had  not  what 
can  be  termed  false  dignity,  allowed  them  to  sit  quietly 
with  us. 

"For  several  miles  the  train  followed  the  outer  line  of 
Federal  fortifications  which  extended  at  our  left;  we 
were  a  half  hour  without  noticing  them ;  at  the  end  of 
that  time  we  reached  a  place  known  as  Fort  Stedman ; 
there  a  battle  had  been  fought  less  than  a  fortnight 
before.  .  .  .  Since  then,  however,  both  armies  had 
buried  their  dead  and  carried  away  their  wounded.  The 
ground,  foot-trodden  and  here  and  there  broken  up 
by  the  wheels  of  artillery  wagons,  had  retained  no  other 
traces  of  a  past  so  recent  and  so  terrible. 

"Farther  on  we  crossed  the  Confederate  lines  of  de- 
fense that  had  protected  Petersburg.  Soon  Petersburg 
loomed  up  in  the  distance.  Mr.  Lincoln  gazed  awhile  on 
its  first  houses,  which  had  been  partly  destroyed  by 
Federal  bullets.  When  we  had  passed  these  the  train 
slackened  its  speed ;  it  had  been  hardly  possible  to  open 
us  a  path  through  this  mass  of  ruins;  at  our  left  the 
depot  buildings  were  torn  down,  on  the  right  the  rail- 


244      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

road  bridge  had  been  wrenched  by  the  explosion  of  a 
mine." 

Coffin,  the  correspondent,  was  in  Petersburg  and  wit- 
nessed the  President's  entry.  "I  heard  the  whistle  of  the 
locomotive  on  the  military  railroad,"  he  says,  "and  saw 
the  train  which  brought  President  Lincoln  to  the  scene. 
The  soldiers  saw  him,  swung  their  hats,  and  gave  a  yell 
of  delight.  He  lifted  his  hat  and  bowed.  Perhaps  I  was 
mistaken,  but  the  lines  upon  his  face  seemed  far  deeper 
than  I  had  ever  seen  them  before.  There  was  no  sign  of 
exultation  in  his  demeanor." 

Of  course,  while  there  the  President  had  a  long  con- 
ference with  General  Grant,  and  shortly  thereafter  re- 
paired to  the  train  which  took  the  party  back  to  City 
Point. 

The  railroad  extending  between  City  Point  and 
Petersburg  was  a  line  nine  miles  long,  constructed  in 
1837,  and  now  known  as  the  City  Point  Branch  of  the 
Norfolk  and  Western  Railway,  of  which  road  it  was 
the  genesis. 

That  evening,  receiving  a  telegram  from  Secretary 
Stanton  objecting  to  the  Chief  Executive's  "unneces- 
sary exposure,"  he  sent  one  in  reply  thanking  him  for 
his  caution,  but  stating  that  he  had  already  been  to 
Petersburg,  and  as  it  was  certain  that  Richmond  had 
fallen,  added  "I  think  I  will  go  there  to-morrow.  I  will 
take  care  of  myself." 

The  next  morning,  before  starting  for  Richmond,  he 
sent  Stanton  another  telegram  stating  that  "General 
Weitzel  telegraphs  from  Richmond  that  of  railroad 
stock,  he  found  there  28  locomotives,  44  passenger  and 
baggage  cars,  and  106  freight  cars." 


PRESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  TRAVELS     245 

The  President  then  boarded  the  River  Queen,  and 
attended  by  Porter's  Malvern  and  the  tug  Bat  pro- 
ceeded up  the  James  River  to  Richmond  which  was 
reached  that  afternoon. 

General  Weitzel  had  taken  the  Confederate  Execu- 
tive Mansion  near  the  Capitol  Grounds  for  his  head- 
quarters, and  for  a  while  President  Lincoln  sat  in  the 
office  chair  but  recently  occupied  by  Jefferson  Davis. 
Later  he  was  driven  around  the  city,  being  shown  the 
principal  points  of  interest.  That  evening  he  slept 
aboard  the  Malvern  and  the  next  day  returned  to  City 
Point. 

The  morning  of  the  8th  the  party  left  for  Washing- 
ton, arriving  there  the  evening  of  the  following  day. 

Secretary  Welles  noted  in  his  diary  under  date  of 
Monday,  April  10th:  "Called  on  the  President,  who 
returned  last  evening,  looking  well  and  feeling  well." 

Four  days  later  Wilkes  Booth's  bullet  had  done  its 
fatal  work. 


CHAPTER    XXI 

THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG 

In  the  preceding  chapter  we  have  dealt  in  detail  with 
the  various  trips  by  rail  and  otherwise  which  Lincoln 
made  as  President — with  the  single  exception  of  that  to 
the  Gettysburg  battlefield,  in  1863.  It  has  demanded 
separate  treatment,  for  it  gave  rise  to  the  most  famous 
single  document  now  associated  with  his  name. 

The  "high  tide  of  the  Confederacy"  broke  on  the 
hard-fought  plains  and  hills  of  Gettysburg,  on  July  1st 
to  3rd,  1863.  Lee's  victorious  campaigners,  not  content 
with  holding  the  Northern  forces  at  bay  in  Virginia, 
were  making  a  bold  counter-stroke  and  actually  carry- 
ing the  war  up  into  the  North.  The  little  town  of 
Gettysburg  just  across  the  border  in  southern  Penn- 
sylvania had  been  reached,  before  the  Union  army  un- 
der General  Meade  came  up  with  them.  Gettysburg  is 
some  sixty  miles  due  north  of  Washington,  and  this 
encircling  movement  on  the  part  of  Lee  must  have  been 
watched  with  keen  anxiety  by  Lincoln  and  his  advisers. 

A  story  goes  that  when  news  of  the  Union  victory 
reached  the  capital  late  at  night,  Stanton  himself  car- 
ried it  over  to  the  President,  who  was  then  in  bed,  after 
having  himself  haunted  the  telegraph  office  for  hours. 
Lincoln  leaped  up  at  the  sound  of  his  voice  without  tak- 
ing time  to  dress  and  opened  the  door  to  his  bedchamber, 
exhibiting — as  Stanton  afterwards  said — the  shortest 
nightshirt  and  the  longest  pair  of  legs  he  ever  saw.  He 

246 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  247 

grabbed  Stanton  by  the  shoulders  and  they  danced  a 
can-can  around  the  room! 

By  a  strange  coincidence  of  history,  on  the  day  that 
news  of  Meade's  victory  was  sent  over  the  country — 
the  Fourth  of  July — Grant  telegraphed  from  the 
South  that  Vicksburg  had  fallen.  This  opened  up  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  So  it  was  a  "Glorious  Fourth" 
indeed. 

Since  Meade  had  not  followed  up  his  victory  by  a 
rear  attack  upon  the  retreating  forces  of  Lee,  Grant 
was  put  in  supreme  command  of  the  Union  forces.  With 
characteristic  energy  he  deployed  his  forces  to  the  east 
and  fought  the  battle  of  Lookout  Mountain.  He  next 
split  the  Confederacy  in  twain  by  sending  Sherman  on 
his  march  through  Georgia  to  the  sea. 

The  autumn  of  this  year,  1863,  saw  brighter  skies  for 
the  Union  than  at  any  time  since  Lincoln's  incumbency 
in  office.  A  spirit  of  optimism  and  thanksgiving  per- 
vaded the  North.  As  one  result,  it  was  decided  to  dedi- 
cate the  battlefield  of  Gettysburg  as  a  National 
Soldiers'  Cemetery.  Two  prime  movers  in  this  were 
Governor  Curtin  of  Pennsylvania  and  David  Wills,  an 
influential  citizen  of  Gettysburg. 

The  project  quickly  elicited  wide  interest,  and  prep- 
arations were  made  on  a  fitting  scale.  Edward  Everett, 
the  brilliant  statesman  and  orator  of  Massachuetts,  was 
asked  to  deliver  the  dedicatory  address.  He  accepted, 
and  the  date  agreed  upon  was  November  19. 

The  President  of  the  United  States,  his  Cabinet, 
General  Meade,  commander  of  the  Union  forces  during 
the  battle,  and  other  prominent  men  were  invited  to  be 
present.  President  Lincoln  was  asked  to  "formally  set 


248      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

aside  these  grounds  to  their  sacred  use  by  a  few  ap- 
propriate remarks."  The  invitation  being  accepted, 
Secretary  Stanton  was  thereupon  authorized  to  make 
the  necessary  arrangements  for  transportation. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  to  consider  the  "Gettysburg 
Address"  as  such  for  obvious  reasons,  except  in-so-far 
as  it  relates  to  the  preparation  of  the  document  and  its 
attendant  circumstances. 

Three  different  sets  of  claims  have  been  advanced : 

First,  that  the  address  was  composed  in  Washington 
before  the  journey; 

Second,  that  the  address  was  written  by  the  President 
while  on  the  train  enroute  to  Gettysburg ;  and 

Third,  that  it  was  not  written  until  his  arrival  at  the 
home  of  David  Wills,  by  whom  he  was  entertained. 

From  a  careful  analysis  of  the  controversy,  it  is  our 
opinion  that  work  was  done  upon  the  preparation  of  his 
speech  by  President  Lincoln  upon  all  three  of  the  oc- 
casions referred  to. 

Noah  Brooks,  newspaper  correspondent  and  intimate 
friend  of  Lincoln,  tells  of  his  accompanying  the  Presi- 
dent to  Gardner,  the  photographer,  on  the  Sunday  be- 
fore the  dedication  of  the  Cemetery,  at  which  time 
Lincoln  showed  him  a  copy  of  the  speech  which  Everett 
was  to  deliver,  and  which  he  had  kindly  sent  him. 
Lincoln  told  Brooks  that  he  had  already  written  out  his 
remarks  but  had  not  finished  them.  His  speech,  he  said, 
would  be  "short,  short,  short."  Bringing  his  notes  with 
him,  he  had  expected  to  go  over  them  in  the  studio,  but 
had  no  chance  to  do  so. 

Ward  Lamon,  Marshal  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
under  Lincoln,  says  that,  a  day  or  two  before  the  dedi- 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  249 

cation,  the  President  took  from  his  hat  a  sheet  of  fools- 
cap, which  he  showed  him  as  being  a  memorandum  of 
what  he  intended  his  remarks  to  be  on  that  occasion. 
Lamon  says  that  they  were  in  substance  what  after- 
ward appeared  in  print  as  his  Gettysburg  speech. 

Isaac  N.  Arnold,  friend  of  the  President  and  Repre- 
sentative in  Washington  during  the  war,  says  in  his 
"Lincoln  and  the  Overthrow  of  Slavery":  "President 
Lincoln  while  on  his  way  from  the  Capital  to  the  battle- 
field, was  notified  that  he  would  be  expected  to  make 
some  remarks.  Retiring  a  short  time,  he  prepared  the 
following  address,"  etc. 

In  his  biography  of  Lincoln  prepared  some  years 
later,  the  same  writer  states  that  Lincoln,  after  being 
notified  while  on  the  train  that  he  would  be  expected  to 
make  some  remarks,  asked  for  some  paper.  "A  rough 
sheet  of  foolscap  was  handed  to  him,  and  retiring  to  a 
seat  by  himself,  with  a  pencil  he  wrote  the  address  which 
has  become  so  celebrated." 

J.  G.  Holland,  editor  of  the  Springfield  Republican 
and  later  of  Scribner's  Monthly,  the  best  of  the  early 
biographers,  whose  life  of  Lincoln  came  out  in  1866 
and  contained  much  original  matter,  after  giving  the 
speech,  said:  "Did  Mr.  Everett  say  more  or  better  in 
all  his  pages  than  Mr.  Lincoln  said  in  these  lines  ?  Yet 
they  were  written  after  he  left  Washington,  and  during 
a  brief  interval  of  leisure." 

William  O.  Stoddard,  one  of  the  President's  private 
secretaries,  although  not  with  his  Chief  on  this  journey, 
has  written  many  intimate  details  of  Lincoln.  In  his 
"True  Story  of  a  Great  Life"  in  referring  to  the  ad- 
dress Stoddard  says  that  "after  leaving  Washington, 


250      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

while  on  the  way,  he  wrote  a  few  sentences  which  have 
found  a  lasting  place  in  the  hearts  and  memories  of 
men." 

Charles  Carleton  Coffin,  a  noted  war  correspondent 
during  the  Civil  War,  and  an  interesting  investigator, 
in  his  biography  of  the  Martyr  President,  on  the  au- 
thority of  Edward  McPherson  of  Gettysburg,  relates 
that  just  before  retiring  Lincoln  asked  his  host,  David 
Wills,  what  the  order  of  exercises  for  the  morrow  would 
be.  On  being  told  that  the  President  of  the  United  States 
would  be  called  on  for  some  remarks,  Lincoln  is  re- 
ported to  have  said  that  then  he  would  have  "to  put 
some  stray  thoughts  together."  And  Coffin  adds,  "In 
his  chamber,  after  the  fatiguing  journey  from  Wash- 
ington, after  an  evening  reception,  he  wrote  out  his 
'stray  thoughts.'  " 

These  statements  are  fair  samples  of  what  other  au- 
thorities have  said  of  like  import.  It  is  now  pretty  gen- 
erally agreed  upon  by  those  who  have  given  careful 
study  to  the  matter,  that  Lincoln  worked  on  a  draft 
of  his  intended  speech  before  he  left  Washington,  at 
least  a  week  or  two  before  the  dedication.  It  is  also  con- 
ceded that  after  his  arrival  in  Gettysburg,  in  the  priv- 
acy of  his  room  in  Judge  Will's  home,  he  got  out  his 
draft  and  finished  it. 

As  to  whether  he  did  any  work  upon  it  while  on  the 
train  from  Washington  to  Gettysburg,  there  is  no  unan- 
imity of  opinion.  That  point  we  will  consider  in  its 
proper  place  in  tracing  the  movements  of  Lincoln  upon 
this  historic  occasion. 

We  are  informed  by  John  G.  Nicolay,  secretary  to 
the  President,  that  up  to  within  two  days  of  the  date 


Courtesy,    Pennsylvania     Railroad 


Courtesy,    Union   Pacific    Railroad 
LOCOMOTIVE  USED  IN  1855  AND  THE  LINCOLN  "FUNERAL  CAB," 

1.  The  locomotive,  "Tiger,"  used  by  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road between  1855  and  1865.  2.  Photograph  of  the  "Funeral 
Car"  taken  at  Chicago,  May  1,  1865. 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  251 

assigned  for  the  ceremonies,  the  President  was  uncer- 
tain whether  he  really  should  take  the  time  away  from 
his  pressing  official  duties  to  attend.  On  that  date  it  was 
apparently  decided  at  a  Cabinet  meeting  that  he  and 
those  of  the  Cabinet  who  could  conveniently  get  away 
should  go.  To  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  Chase,  who 
had  not  been  present,  Lincoln  addressed  the  following 
note: 

"My  Dear  Sir :  I  expected  to  see  you  here  at  Cabinet 
meeting,  and  to  say  something  about  going  to  Gettys- 
burg. There  will  be  a  train  to  take  and  return  us.  The 
time  for  starting  is  not  yet  fixed,  but  when  it  shall  be  I 
will  notify  you. 

Yours  truly, 
A.  Lincoln." 

Later  in  the  day,  Secretary  Stanton,  to  whom  had 
been  assigned  the  task  of  making  the  necessary  trans- 
portation arrangements,  sent  this  note  to  his  Executive 
officer : 

"Mr.  President: 

"It  is  proposed  by  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  road — 

"First,  To  leave  Washington  Thursday  morning  at 
6  a.  m.  ;  and 

"Second,  To  leave  Baltimore  at  8  a.  m.,  arriving  at 
Gettysburg  at  12  noon,  thus  giving  two  hours  to  view 
the  ground  before  the  dedication  services  commence. 

"Third,  To  leave  Gettysburg  at  6  p.  m.,  and  arrive 
in  Washington,  midnight ;  thus  doing  all  in  one  day. 

"Mr.  Smith  says  the  Northern  Central  road  agrees 
to  this  arrangement. 


252      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"Please  consider  it,  and  if  any  change  is  desired,  let 
me  know,  so  that  it  can  be  made. 

Yours  truly, 

Edwin  M.  Stanton." 

This  arrangement,  however,  did  not  suit  the  Presi- 
dent, and  he  returned  Stanton's  communication  with  the 
following  notation : 

"I  do  not  like  this  arrangement.  I  do  not  wish  to  so 
go  that  by  the  slightest  accident  we  fail  entirely,  and, 
at  the  best,  the  whole  to  be  a  mere  breathless  running 
of  the  gauntlet.  But,  any  way. 

A.  Lincoln." 

Lincoln's  objection  to  the  "time-table"  of  Stanton 
convinced  the  latter  that  the  schedule  needed  remodel- 
ing, so  instead  of  leaving  Washington  the  morning  of 
the  ceremonies,  the  time  of  leaving  was  changed  to  noon 
of  the  day  before,  Wednesday  the  18th. 

Wayne  MacVeagh,  a  rising  young  lawyer  of  Penn- 
sylvania at  that  time,  and  later  known  as  a  statesman 
and  diplomat,  happening  to  be  in  Washington  a  day 
or  two  before  the  dedicatory  exercises  in  consultation 
with  President  Lincoln  and  Secretary  Stanton,  was 
asked  by  the  former  to  accompany  the  party  to  Gettys- 
burg as  his  guest  on  the  special  train.  MacVeagh  had 
been  serving  on  the  staff  of  General  Couch  during  the 
summer,  and  replied  that  the  General  had  kindly  offered 
to  take  him  along  as  his  aide.  But  Lincoln  told  Mac- 
Veagh that  there  were  certain  matters  he  wished  to 
talk  over  with  him,  which  could  be  done  more  conven- 
iently on  the  road  to  Gettysburg  than  at  some  other 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  253 

time.  The  attorney  then  said  that  he  would  accept  the 
invitation  with  pleasure.  On  the  morning  of  the  18th 
MacVeagh  arrived  in  Washington  and  took  breakfast 
with  Stanton.  The  Secretary,  who  had  expected  to  ac- 
company the  party  to  Gettysburg,  then  informed  him 
that  an  unexpected  emergency  arising  in  the  War  De- 
partment would  keep  him  in  Washington,  but  that  he 
had  made  arrangements  with  President  Lincoln  for  his 
son  to  go  in  his  stead.  He  asked  his  visitor  if  he  would 
not  look  after  young  Stanton  on  the  journey,  which 
request  was  gladly  acceded  to. 

Provost-Marshal  General  James  B.  Pry  was  selected 
by  Stanton  as  a  sort  of  special  escort  to  accompany  the 
President,  and  at  the  hour  appointed  went  to  the  White 
House.  There  he  found  Lincoln's  carriage  at  the  door 
waiting  to  take  him  to  the  station,  but  the  President  was 
not  ready.  After  a  while  he  appeared,  and  General  Fry, 
remarking  on  the  lateness  of  the  hour,  said  that  they 
had  no  time  to  lose  in  getting  to  the  train. 

"Well,"  Lincoln  replied,  "I  feel  about  that  as  the 
convict  in  one  of  our  Illinois  towns  felt  when  he  was  go- 
ing to  the  gallows.  As  he  passed  along  the  road  in 
custody  of  the  sheriff,  the  people,  eager  to  see  the  exe- 
cution, kept  crowding  and  pushing  past  him.  At  last 
he  called  out :  "  'Boys,  you  needn't  be  in  such  a  hurry  to 
get  ahead ;  there  won't  be  any  fun  till  I  get  there.'  " 

When  the  President  and  General  Fry  arrived  at  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  station,  they  found  the  train  await- 
ing them.  It  consisted  of  a  locomotive  and  four 
coaches.  The  locomotive  was  gaily  decorated  with  flags 
and  streamers.  The  rear  coach  was  a  directors'  car,  the 
back  of  which,  occupying  about  one-third  of  the  coach, 


254      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

was  partitioned  off  into  a  kind  of  room  with  seats 
around  the  walls. 

The  train  was  soon  in  motion.  But  three  members  of 
the  President's  Cabinet  accompanied  him:  Secretary 
of  State  Seward,  Secretary  of  the  Interior  Usher,  and 
Postmaster-General  Blair.  Two  of  his  secretaries  were 
present,  John  G.  Nicolay  and  John  Hay.  Several  for- 
eign embassies  were  represented.  There  was  the  French 
Minister  M.  Mercier,  and  Admiral  Renaud  of  the 
French  Navy ;  Chevalier  Bertinatti,  the  Italian  Minis- 
ter, and  Signor  Cora,  his  Secretary  of  Legation,  as  well 
as  Chevalier  Isola  and  Lieutenant  Martinez,  of  the  Ital- 
ian Navy;  Mr.  McDougall  represented  the  Canadian 
Ministry.  Colonel  George  W.  Burton,  and  Captain  Alan 
Ramsay  of  the  Marine  Corps  were  there,  as  was  the 
Marine  Band,  Lieutenant  Henry  C.  Cochrane  in 
charge.  There  was  also  an  escort  from  the  First  Regi- 
ment of  the  Invalids'  Corps.  Captain  H.  A.  Wise  of  the 
Navy  and  his  wife,  the  daughter  of  Edward  Everett  the 
orator  of  the  day,  were  also  present.  In  addition,  there 
were  several  newspaper  correspondents  and  a  military 
Guard  of  Honor  which  was  to  take  part  in  the  pro- 
cession at  Gettysburg;  as  well  as  young  Stanton  and 
MacVeagh.  On  the  way,  at  different  points,  various 
military  officers  joined  the  Presidential  train. 

Lieutenant  Cochrane  found  himself  seated  opposite 
President  Lincoln,  and  noticing  that  the  Executive  had 
no  newspaper,  handed  him  a  copy  of  the  New  York 
Herald  which  he  had  brought  along.  Lincoln  took  the 
paper  and  thanked  Cochrane. 

"I  like  to  see  what  they  say  about  us,"  he  remarked. 

This  particular  issue  contained  nothing  of  an  espe- 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  255 

cially  exciting  nature,  the  most  important  news  per- 
taining to  Burnside  at  Knoxville,  Sherman  at 
Chattanooga,  and  Meade  on  the  Rapidan.  These  gen- 
erals, however,  were  expecting  imminent  trouble. 

After  reading  for  a  short  while,  President  Lincoln 
indulged  in  a  laugh  at  some  of  the  wild  guesses  the 
paper  made  concerning  future  movements  of  the  armies. 
Cochrane  says  that  it  was  a  pleasure  to  see  the  Presi- 
dent's sad  face  light  up,  for  he  thought  that  at  this  time 
the  Executive  was  looking  very  bad  physically,  sunken- 
eyed,  and  careworn. 

Lincoln  handed  back  the  paper,  and  commenced  a 
conversation  with  his  companion.  Glancing  out  of  the 
window  as  they  passed  over  the  road,  a  new  line  of 
thought  was  suggested.  He  remarked  on  a  certain 
change  which  he  had  noticed  in  the  craft  that  plied  the 
Chesapeake.  When  he  had  first  passed  over  the  road  on 
his  way  to  Congress  in  1847,  he  had  observed  square- 
rigged  vessels  up  the  Patapsco  River  as  far  as  the  Re- 
lay House,  while  now  there  seemed  to  be  only  small 
vessels. 

As  the  special  train  neared  Baltimore,  Secretary 
Seward  became  uneasy.  This  was  the  first  time  that  the 
President  had  gone  toward  Baltimore  since  he  had  ar- 
rived there  in  February,  1861,  and  Seward  could  not 
help  but  think  of  Lincoln's  journey  at  that  time  when 
he  had  to  pass  secretly  through  Baltimore  for  fear  of  an 
attack  upon  his  life.  As  the  western  edge  of  the  city 
was  reached,  the  locomotive  was  detached  from  the 
train.  The  cars  were  then  dragged  by  horses  to  the 
Northern  Central  Railway  tracks,  at  Calvert  Street 
Station.  Thence  to  Hanover  Junction  the  train  would 


256      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

travel  over  the  Northern  Central,  where  they  could 
connect  with  the  Western  Maryland  running  into 
Gettysburg. 

Everything  was  peaceful  as  the  train  was  hauled 
through  Baltimore,  and  when  Calvert  nation  was 
reached  less  than  two  hundred  people  were  found  there. 
The  crowd  in  an  orderly  manner  clamored  for  the 
President,  and  at  the  suggestion  of  Seward,  he  stepped 
out  on  the  platform  when  the  train  was  about  ready  to 
move. 

Several  women  with  children  in  their  arms  were  in 
the  crowd,  and  Lincoln  took  two  or  three  of  them  in  his 
arms  and  kissed  them,  to  the  delight  of  the  mothers. 

At  this  Junction  the  size  of  the  party  was  augmented 
by  the  arrival  of  several  more  army  officers,  and  the 
Second  United  States  Artillery  Band,  one  of  the  oldest 
and  best  bands  in  the  army.  General  Robert  C.  Schenck, 
commandant  of  the  Military  Department  in  which 
Gettysburg  was  situated,  and  staff,  which  included 
Lieutenant-Colonel  J.  W.  Scully  of  the  staff  of  the 
Military  Governor  of  Tennessee;  Assistant  Adjutant- 
General  E.  W.  Andrews,  of  the  staff  of  General  W.  W. 
Morris,  in  command  of  the  defenses  of  Baltimore;  and 
two  other  members  of  Morris'  staff,  as  well  as  others  of 
whom  we  have  no  record,  joined  the  special  here. 

General  Morris,  on  account  of  suffering  from  boils, 
was  unable  to  be  present  himself,  and  General  Andrews 
offered  apologies  for  his  chief's  absence.  The  President 
cordially  greeted  Andrews  and  the  other  officers,  and 
then  with  a  quizzical  expression  turned  to  the 
Postmaster-General. 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  257 

"Blair,"  he  said,  "did  you  ever  know  that  fright  has 
sometimes  proved  a  sure  cure  for  boils  ?" 

"No,  Mr.  President.  How  is  that?"  Blair  asked. 

"I'll  tell  you.  Not  long  ago,  when  Colonel ,  with 

his  cavalry,  was  at  the  front,  and  the  'rebs'  were  making 
things  rather  lively  for  us,  the  Colonel  was  ordered  out 
on  a  reconnaissance.  He  was  troubled  at  the  time  with 
a  big  boil  where  it  made  horseback  riding  decidedly  un- 
comfortable. He  hadn't  gone  more  than  two  or  three 
miles  when  he  declared  he  couldn't  stand  it  any  longer, 
and  dismounted  and  ordered  the  troops  forward  with- 
out him.  He  had  just  settled  down  to  enjoy  his  relief 
from  change  of  position  when  he  was  startled  by  the 
rapid  reports  of  pistols  and  the  helter-skelter  approach 
of  his  troops  in  full  retreat  before  a  yelling  rebel  force. 
He  forgot  everything  but  the  yells,  sprang  into  his  sad- 
dle, and  made  capital  time  over  fences  and  ditches  till 
safe  within  the  lines.  The  pain  from  his  boil  was  gone, 
and  the  boil  too,  and  the  colonel  swore  that  there  was 
no  cure  for  boils  so  sure  as  fright  from  rebel  yells,  and 
that  the  secession  had  rendered  to  loyalty  one  valuable 
service  at  any  rate." 

At  Baltimore  a  baggage-car  had  been  attached  to  the 
train,  in  which  luncheon  had  been  prepared.  As  the  train 
left  the  city,  those  members  of  the  party  who  had  come 
from  Washington  were  invited  into  this  car  for 
luncheon. 

At  this  juncture  the  train  was  going  through  a  deep 
cut  and  the  baggage-car  was  consequently  darker  than 
usual.  Likewise  the  noise  of  the  train  was  greater.  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table. 


258      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

"This  situation,"  he  said,  "reminds  me  of  a  friend  of 
mine  in  southern  Illinois,  who,  riding  over  a  corduroy 
road  where  the  logs  were  not  sufficiently  close  together, 
was  frightened  by  a  thunderstorm.  In  the  glimpse  of 
light  afforded  by  the  lightning,  his  horse  would  en- 
deavor to  reach  another  log,  but  too  frequently  missed 
it,  and  fell  with  his  rider.  As  a  result  of  several  such 
mishaps,  the  traveler,  although  not  accustomed  to 
prayer,  thought  that  the  time  had  come  to  address  his 
Maker,  and  said :  'Oh,  Lord,  if  it  would  suit  you  equally 
well,  it  would  suit  me  better  if  I  had  a  little  more  light 
and  a  little  less  noise.'  " 

As  Lincoln  concluded  the  story,  the  train  passed  out 
into  the  open,  where  the  noise  was  less  and  the  light 
greater. 

After  luncheon,  the  President  became  one  of  a  group 
of  kindred  spirits,  and  they  whiled  away  about  an 
hour  telling  stories,  Lincoln  doing  his  turn  and  deriv- 
ing much  pleasure  from  the  association.  As  the  train 
neared  Hanover  Junction,  the  President  arose. 

"Gentlemen,"  he  said,  "this  is  all  very  pleasant,  but 
the  people  will  expect  me  to  say  something  to-morrow, 
and  I  must  give  the  matter  some  thought." 

The  story-telling  party  occupied  the  fore-part  of  the 
directors'  coach,  and  Lincoln  retired  to  the  private 
compartment  in  the  rear. 

The  above  is  on  the  authority  of  Lieutenant  Coch- 
rane, who  heard  the  President  make  the  remark  as  he 
retired  to  his  compartment. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Scully,  one  of  the  party  who 
joined  the  train  at  Baltimore,  says  in  referring  to  the 
charge  that  Lincoln  did  no  writing  on  the  train,  that 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  259 

"while  a  hundred  or  more  did  not  see  him  write  it,  their 
testimony  is  altogether  negative.  But  I  know  that  at 
least  half  a  dozen  did  see  him  write  it,  and  of  whom 
I  was  one.  I  saw  him  take  a  pad  from  the  hand  of 
some  one ;  sit  down  in  his  'state  room' ;  and  write  some- 
thing that  he  held  in  his  hand  while  delivering  that 
speech." 

Major-General  Julius  H.  Stahel,  who  was  on  the 
train,  said  in  a  letter  to  Isaac  Markens,  in  1911:  "I 
escorted  President  Lincoln  from  Washington  to  Gettys- 
burg, and  was  with  him  in  the  same  car  when  he  wrote 
something  on  his  knee,  which  I  fully  believe  was  the 
famous  address  which  he  delivered  at  the  battlefield." 

From  the  foregoing,  we  have  the  direct  evidence  of 
two  gentlemen  who  saw  President  Lincoln  write  some- 
thing in  his  private  compartment,  one  of  whom  claims 
to  have  seen  him  hold  the  same  set  of  notes  while  deliv- 
ering the  speech.  Concerning  the  latter  statement,  how- 
ever, in  view  of  the  evidence  presented  by  Nicolay  and 
Lambert  in  their  papers  on  the  Gettysburg  address, 
there  seems  to  be  room  for  doubt,  although  it  is  possi- 
ble that  one  of  the  two  sheets  held  by  Lincoln  at  the 
time  of  its  delivery  was  either  the  one  upon  which  he 
did  some  writing  on  the  train,  or  a  similar  sheet  upon 
which  the  address  was  finished  at  the  home  of  Mr.  Wills. 

To  the  mind  of  the  writer,  the  fact  of  Lincoln's  retir- 
ing to  his  "state  room,"  as  Scully  calls  it,  to  put  his 
thoughts  on  paper,  explains  why  so  many  members  of 
the  party  say  they  saw  him  write  nothing.  As  Scully 
further  states,  there  were  only  a  half  dozen  saw  him. 
This  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  compartment 
held  a  limited  number  of  persons. 


260      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Furthermore,  again  to  quote  Scully,  the  testimony  of 
certain  members  of  the  party  to  the  effect  that  they 
did  not  see  Lincoln  write  anything,  is  "altogether  nega- 
tive." There  were  three  other  passenger  cars  on  the 
train,  whose  occupants  naturally  would  not  be  in  a 
position  to  note  what  was  going  on  in  the  fourth  coach. 
Cornelius  Cole,  Representative  from  California,  who 
was  a  member  of  the  party  said  in  a  communication  to 
the  writer  that  he  was  not  in  Lincoln's  car,  and  "of 
course  I  did  not  see  him  writing  anything." 

The  President  was  probably  only  a  short  while  con- 
sidering his  address  on  the  train,  yet  nevertheless  in 
view  of  the  direct  testimony  we  have,  there  is  no  doubt 
but  that  he  devoted  at  least  a  small  portion  of  the  time 
on  the  road  to  Gettysburg  in  going  over  certain 
thoughts  which  he  wished  to  express  on  the  field  of 
battle  the  next  day.  It  is  the  conviction  of  the  writer 
that  the  work  done  on  the  speech  enroute  was  on  the 
second  or  last  page  of  the  manuscript,  about  one-third 
of  the  address,  but  whether  this  was  on  account  of  ac- 
cidentally or  purposely  leaving  this  portion  back  in 
Washington,  or  because  it  had  not  been  thought  out, 
is  a  matter  of  conjecture. 

On  the  train  was  a  gentleman  who  stated  that  he  had 
lost  his  only  son  on  "Little  Round  Top"  at  Gettysburg, 
and  he  was  on  his  way  to  look  at  the  spot.  This  touched 
Lincoln  deeply. 

"You  have  been  called  upon,"  he  said,  to  the  be- 
reaved father,  "to  make  a  terrible  sacrifice  for  the 
Union,  and  a  visit  to  that  spot,  I  fear,  will  open  your 
wounds  afresh.  But  oh !  my  dear  sir,  if  we  had  reached 
the  end  of  such  sacrifices,  and  had  nothing  left  for 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG     261 

us  to  do  but  place  garlands  on  the  graves  of  those  who 
have  already  fallen,  we  could  give  thanks  even  amidst 
our  tears ;  but  when  I  think  of  the  sacrifices  of  life  yet 
to  be  offered  and  the  hearts  and  homes  yet  to  be  made 
desolate  before  this  dreadful  war,  so  wickedly  forced 
upon  us,  is  over,  my  heart  is  like  lead  within  me,  and 
I  feel,  at  times,  like  hiding  in  deep  darkness." 

At  one  of  the  stopping  places,  a  beautiful  little  girl, 
with  a  bouquet  of  roses  in  her  hand,  was  lifted  up  to  a 
window  in  Lincoln's  car.  "Flowerth  for  the  Prethident," 
she  lisped.  Lincoln  went  over  to  the  window,  and  took 
the  rose-buds.  Then  he  bent  down  and  kissed  her. 

"You're  a  sweet  little  rose-bud  yourself,"  he  said,  "I 
hope  your  life  will  open  into  perpetual  beauty  and 
goodness." 

Every  time  the  train  stopped,  the  President  would 
make  a  few  remarks  from  the  rear  platform  to  the 
people  who  had  assembled  to  pay  their  respects  to  him, 
but  said  nothing  particularly  noteworthy. 

At  Hanover  Junction,  the  President's  special  was 
scheduled  to  meet  another  special  train  which  was  due 
to  leave  Harrisburg  at  1 :  30  p.  m.  This  train  was  to 
contain  several  governors,  as  well  as  other  civil  dig- 
nitaries and  military  officers.  But  on  the  arrival  of  the 
Washington  special  at  the  Junction,  forty-six  miles 
from  Baltimore,  it  was  found  that  the  other  train  had 
been  delayed  by  an  accident.  The  President's  train 
was  then  ready  to  proceed  alone,  but  was  delayed  here, 
as  at  various  other  points  along  the  line,  by  military 
trains,  "which  always  claimed  the  right-of-way,"  as 
stated  by  Cornelius  Cole,  who  is  our  authority  for  this. 

As   the   special   neared   Gettysburg,   the   President 


262      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

found  time  for  a  short  talk  with  Wayne  MacVeagh.  The 
nature  of  their  conversation  is  not  disclosed  by  Mac- 
Veagh in  his  reminiscences  of  the  event,  but  according 
to  Secretary  Hay,  who  heard  the  colloquy,  it  related  to 
affairs  in  Missouri  at  that  time.  Hay  says  that  Mac- 
Veagh talked  radicalism,  and  talked  it  rather  recklessly, 
but  when  he  realized  that  he  was  going  too  far,  he 
ceased. 

No  accident  occurred  enroute,  yet  for  the  reason 
stated,  the  train  was  somewhat  late  in  arriving  at  Get- 
tysburg. Lincoln's  wisdom  in  not  adhering  to  Stanton's 
close  schedule  is  apparent. 

A  large  crowd  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  distin- 
guished visitors  at  the  little  depot  on  Carlisle  Street. 
Among  them  was  Edward  Everett,  who  had  spent  the 
day  in  going  over  the  battlefield,  and  who  now  lost  no 
time  in  greeting  his  distinguished  fellow-speaker. 

President  Lincoln  was  entertained  overnight, .  as  we 
have  said,  at  the  home  of  David  Wills.  On  the  following 
morning,  a  gray  November  day,  the  battlefield  was  in- 
spected and  final  arrangements  made  for  the  exercises. 
They  began  in  the  afternoon  with  a  large  chorus  of 
well-trained  voices,  and  selections  by  the  fine  military 
bands.  Edward  Everett,  the  speaker  of  the  day,  was 
introduced,  and  for  two  hours  he  held  the  attention  of 
the  throng  with  his  polished  sentences  and  rounded 
periods.  It  was  an  excellent  example  of  sustained  ora- 
tory. His  hearers  applauded,  and  the  chorus  sang  an- 
other selection. 

Fresh  applause  greeted  the  tall  form  which  next 
arose.  On  account  of  the  chilly  day,  Lincoln  wore  a  long 
scarf  around  his  shoulders  over  his  long  coat,  and  his 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  GETTYSBURG  263 

familiar  "stove-pipe"  hat.  Referring  casually  to  the 
notes  held  in  his  hand,  he  began  the  now  immortal  lines, 
"Fourscore  and  seven  years  ago."  Hardly  had  the  audi- 
ence sensed  that  he  had  begun  his  speech,  when  he  had 
ended  it  and  sat  down  again.  In  a  period  of  about  three 
minutes — contrasting  sharply  with  Everett's  long  ad- 
dress— Lincoln  had  reached  his  concluding  phrase,  "and 
that  government  of  the  people,  by  the  people,  for  the 
people,  shall  not  perish  from  the  earth." 

"Is  that  all  he  has  to  say?"  asked  more  than  one 
hearer;  and  it  is  said  that  Secretary  Seward  was  no 
less  disappointed.  But  Everett  was  more  generous.  He 
wrote  Lincoln  as  follows : 

"I  should  be  glad  if  I  could  flatter  myself  that  I  came 
as  near  the  central  idea  of  the  occasion  in  two  hours, 
as  you  did  in  two  minutes." 

After  the  dedicatory  exercises  were  over,  the  presi- 
dential party  repaired  to  their  train,  which  had  been 
held  in  waiting,  and  which  left  the  village  about  six 
o'clock.  As  the  train  pulled  out,  Lincoln  stood  on  the 
rear  platform,  and  waved  his  farewell  until  he  was  lost 
to  sight  in  the  gathering  twilight. 

The  entire  party  was  fatigued  with  the  strenuous 
exercises  of  the  day  and  preceding  night,  and  the  Presi- 
dent was  no  exception.  He  had  acquired  a  severe  head- 
ache, and  lay  down  in  the  private  compartment  of  the 
directors'  car,  bathing  his  head  in  cold  water  at  inter- 
vals. 

Remembering  that  he  had  not  finished  his  talk  of 
the  day  before  with  MacVeagh,  he  sent  for  him,  as  he 
recalled  that  the  attorney  had  told  him  on  the  way  to 
Gettysburg  that  in  order  to  keep  a  professional  en- 


264      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

gagement  in  Philadelphia,  he  would  have  to  leave  the 
train  at  Hanover  Junction. 

MacVeagh,  after  Lincoln  had  delivered  his  speech 
in  the  afternoon,  had  complimented  him  on  it  very 
enthusiastically.  But  the  President  had  thought  him 
extravagant.  He  himself  had  a  feeling  of  inadequacy 
if  not  failure.  Now  in  the  privacy  of  the  compartment, 
MacVeagh  again  referred  to  it. 

"You  did  not  like  what  I  said  this  afternoon  about 
your  address,"  he  said,  "and  I  have  thought  it  carefully 
over,  and  I  can  only  say  that  the  words  you  spoke  will 
live  with  the  land's  language." 

"You  are  more  extravagant  than  ever,"  Lincoln  re- 
plied, "and  you  are  the  only  person  who  has  such  a 
misconception  of  what  I  said;  but  I  did  not  send  for 
you  to  talk  about  my  address,  but  about  more  important 
matters." 

The  conferees  discussed  at  some  length  the  matter 
they  wished  to  talk  over,  until  Hanover  Junction  was 
reached.  The  train  arrived  in  Washington  about  mid- 
night. 

As  a  sequel  to  this  journey,  we  learn  from  Secretary 
Welles  that  the  President  "returned  ill,  and  in  a  few 
days  it  was  ascertained  he  had  the  varioloid.  ...  It 
was  in  a  light  form,  but  yet  held  on  longer  than  was 
expected." 


CHAPTER   XXII 

THE  LAST  JOURNEY 

President  Lincoln  was  assassinated  on  Good  Friday, 
April  14,  1865.  While  the  deepest  sorrow  was  naturally 
felt  in  the  North,  there  were  many  also  in  the  South 
who  realized  that  now  the  struggle  was  over,  their 
best  friend  was  gone. 

With  the  political  and  other  aspects  of  this  tragedy 
the  present  study  has  nothing  to  do.  We  can  only  chron- 
icle the  details  and  itinerary  of  the  last  journey  of  all 
— from  Washington  back  to  the  home  town  in  Illinois. 

Preparations  for  the  funeral  were  immediately  un- 
dertaken by  Secretary  Stanton,  and  under  his  direc- 
tions all  plans  were  made,  including  the  schedule  and 
itinerary  for  the  series  of  trains  which  were  to  convey 
Abraham  Lincoln's  body  back  to  Springfield,  there  to 
lie  among  his  townspeople. 

The  route  as  planned  differed  from  that  over  which 
the  President-elect  had  passed  in  1861  to  assume  the 
reins  of  government,  in  that  it  omitted  Pittsburgh 
and  Cincinnati  and  detoured  by  way  of  Chicago,  in- 
stead of  going  direct  to  Springfield  from  Indianapolis. 

From  the  beginning  it  had  been  decided  that  the  re- 
mains of  the  late  President  should  be  interred  in  Spring- 
field, and  at  Mrs.  Lincoln's  request  the  body  of  their 
son  Willie,  who  had  died  in  the  White  House  in  1862, 
was  to  accompany  them. 

When  it  was  learned  that  Lincoln's  body  was  to  be 

265 


266      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

taken  to  Illinois,  it  seemed  that  every  hamlet,  town 
and  city  asked  that  the  train  be  stopped  within  their 
limits,  if  only  for  short  periods,  in  order  that  the  inhabi- 
tants might  pay  their  homage  to  one  whom  they  had 
loved. 

On  Tuesday  the  18th,  the  mortal  remains  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  were  placed  in  the  East  Room  of  the 
White  House,  where  the  funeral  services  were  con- 
ducted the  next  day.  At  two  o'clock  that  afternoon  they 
were  taken  to  the  Capitol,  where  they  lay  until  the 
morning  of  the  21st,  when  according  to  schedule  they 
were  to  be  placed  on  board  the  funeral  car  awaiting 
them. 

Between  six  and  seven  a.  m.  of  the  latter  date,  the 
body  was  removed  from  the  rotunda  and  escorted  to  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  station.  Here  a  large  as- 
semblage of  people  had  gathered,  but  only  those  holding 
tickets  authorizing  them  to  accompany  the  funeral 
party  were  allowed  to  enter  the  depot  buildings,  except 
those  passengers  taking  the  regular  7 :  30  train  for 
Baltimore. 

The  special  train  provided  by  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio 
Railroad  to  be  used  at  the  commencement  of  the  long 
journey  as  far  as  Baltimore,  was  due  to  leave  at  eight 
o'clock.  It  consisted  of  nine  cars,  including  the  funeral 
coach  and  the  one  occupied  by  the  Guard  of  Honor. 
The  engine  and  cars  composing  the  train  were  all  new, 
and  draped  in  mourning.  As  was  the  case  during  the 
entire  journey,  a  pilot  engine  preceded  the  special. 

Governor  John  Brough  of  Ohio,  and  John  W.  Gar- 
rett, President  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad, 
who  had  been  appointed  a  Committee  of  Arrangements 


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THE  LAST  JOURNEY  267 

by  Stanton  to  regulate  all  transportation  incident  to 
the  conveyance  of  the  remains  of  the  late  President, 
had  general  charge  of  the  entire  journey.  Brigadier- 
General  D.  C.  McCallum,  in  charge  of  Military  Rail- 
roads, had  oversight  of  the  transportation  facilities. 

The  Secretary  of  War  was  represented  by  Assistant 
Adjutant  General  E.  D.  Townsend,  while  Secretary 
Welles  of  the  Navy  was  represented  by  Rear-Admiral 
C.  H.  Davis.  A  special  Guard  of  Honor  consisting  of 
other  officers  of  high  rank  representing  both  depart- 
ments also  accompanied  the  party.  The  military  guard 
directly  in  charge  of  the  body  was  composed  of  officers 
from  the  Invalid  Corps. 

In  addition  to  these  there  was  a  large  delegation  rep- 
resenting both  branches  of  Congress,  many  governors,  a 
delegation  from  the  state  of  Illinois,  newspaper  men, 
and  others.  Aside  from  Mrs.  Lincoln,  her  two  sons,  and 
the  private  secretaries,  there  were  three  members  of 
the  party  who  had  also  accompanied  the  special  which 
carried  the  President-elect  to  Washington:  Judge 
David  Davis  and  Marshal  Ward  Hill  Lamon,  two  old 
Illinois  friends,  and  Major-General  David  Hunter. 

Promptly  at  eight  o'clock  the  train  started  slowly 
from  the  station,  with  the  engine  bell  tolling.  The 
crowd  of  onlookers  stood  with  uncovered  heads.  The 
rate  of  speed  was  purposely  limited,  to  avoid  accidents. 
No  stops  were  made  between  Washington  and  Balti- 
more, but  all  along  the  line  groups  of  people  had  gath- 
ered, and  these  stood  with  bared  heads  and  sorrowful 
faces  while  the  train  passed. 

At  ten  o'clock  the  train  pulled  into  the  Camden 
Street  Station,  Baltimore,  preceded  a  few  minutes  by 


268      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

the  pilot  engine.  Here  a  large  concourse  of  people  was 
gathered,  blocking  all  traffic  near  the  depot.  The  re- 
mains were  taken  to  the  rotunda  of  the  Exchange  Build- 
ing, where  they  were  viewed  by  tens  of  thousands  until 
the  time  came  for  the  removal. 

As  Harrisburg  was  the  next  destination,  the  body  was 
then  borne  to  the  Northern  Central  Railway  station 
where  a  new  train  had  been  made  up.  Three  o'clock 
was  the  time  scheduled  for  leaving,  but  it  was  a  few 
minutes  after  that  time  when  the  train  got  in  motion. 

Though  not  scheduled  to  stop  at  York,  on  their  ar- 
rival at  that  point  a  delegation  of  ladies  from  that 
community  was  allowed  to  place  a  beautiful  wreath  on 
the  coffin. 

About  eight  p.  m.  the  train  arrived  at  Harrisburg. 
At  Baltimore  the  weather  had  been  inclement,  and 
upon  the  arrival  at  Harrisburg  the  rainfall  was  so 
heavy  that  it  was  found  necessary  to  dispense  with  the 
intended  civic  and  military  display.  The  remains  were 
taken  to  the  House  of  Representatives  in  the  State  Cap- 
itol, through  an  immense  throng  which  had  braved  the 
elements.  From  nine  to  twelve  o'clock  that  night  the 
people  were  permitted  to  view  the  body,  when  it  was 
locked  from  view  until  seven  o'clock  the  next  morning. 

At  ten  under  escort  Lincoln's  body  was  taken  to  the 
station  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  and  at  eleven 
o'clock  the  special  pulled  out  bound  for  Philadelphia. 
At  various  points  crowds  were  observed  lining  the 
tracks,  and  it  has  been  estimated  that  not  less  than 
twenty  thousand  people  were  congregated  at  Lan- 
caster. 

The  engineer  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  train  on 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  269 

this  run  often  related  in  later  years  how  the  school 
children  along  the  line  had  strewn  flowers  over  the 
tracks  in  such  profusion  at  different  stations  that  it  was 
with  difficulty  the  engine  passed  through,  as  the  wheels 
in  crushing  the  flowers  became  so  slippery  that  the 
train  almost  stalled  more  than  once. 

Philadelphia  was  reached  at  half-past  four  o'clock 
that  afternoon.  Here  the  body  was  taken  to  Independ- 
ence Hall.  It  was  now  Saturday  the  22nd,  and  until 
the  following  Monday  the  remains  lay  in  state.  Dur- 
ing this  time  it  is  said  that  they  were  viewed  by  three 
hundred  thousand  people.  The  engineer  quoted  above 
further  states  that  the  sidewalks  in  front  of  the  old 
Hall  were  littered  with  crushed  hoop-skirts  and  bustles, 
then  in  vogue,  that  had  become  disarranged  and  broken 
in  the  congestion. 

Leaving  Philadelphia  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
bound  for  New  York,  a  brief  stop  was  made  at  Trenton. 
At  Jersey  City,  the  terminus  of  the  road,  a  fitting  re- 
ception was  given  the  funeral  party.  The  casket  was 
removed  to  a  ferry-boat  which  arrived  on  the  New  York 
side  of  the  Hudson  River  at  the  foot  of  Desbrosses 
Street,  between  ten  and  eleven  o'clock,  an  hour  later 
than  the  schedule  called  for.  The  funeral  car  and 
that  occupied  by  the  Guard  of  Honor  were  ferried 
across  on  another  boat. 

At  New  York  the  body  lay  in  state  in  the  City  Hall 
until  the  following  afternoon,  viewed  by  full  half  a 
million  mourners,  including  the  venerable  General  Win- 
field  Scott,  retired  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Army. 

A  few  minutes  past  four  o'clock  on  the  25th,  the 
funeral  train  provided  by  the  Hudson  River  Railroad 


270      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

pulled  out  of  the  depot  enroute  to  Albany.  This  jour- 
ney up  the  Hudson  must  have  been  most  impressive, 
as  testified  by  several  who  accompanied  the  party. 

"The  train  went  up  the  Hudson  River  by  night," 
say  secretaries  Nicolay  and  Hay,  "and  at  every  town 
and  village  on  the  way  vast  crowds  were  revealed  in 
waiting  by  the  fitful  glare  of  torches ;  dirges  and  hymns 
were  sung  as  the  train  moved  by.  Midnight  had  passed 
when  the  coffin  was  borne  to  the  Capitol  at  Albany,  yet 
the  multitude  rushed  in  as  if  it  were  day,  and  for  twelve 
hours  the  long  line  of  people  from  northern  New  York 
and  the  neighboring  states  poured  through  the  room." 

At  the  larger  stations  along  the  railroad,  such  as 
Yonkers,  Peekskill,  and  Poughkeepsie,  thousands  had 
assembled  to  watch  the  train  pass  through. 

The  special  reached  East  Albany,  the  northern  term- 
inus of  the  Hudson  River  road  at  eleven  p.  m.,  and 
under  escort  the  casket  was  conveyed  across  the  river. 
Meanwhile  the  funeral  and  Guard  of  Honor  cars  were 
detached  from  the  train  and  gotten  ready  for  movement 
to  Albany  proper  by  the  way  of  Troy,  the  same  detour 
used  by  the  Lincoln  party  in  1861. 

At  Albany  the  body  was  placed  in  the  Assembly 
Chamber  in  the  Capitol,  where  it  was  viewed  by  a  multi- 
tude of  people,  not  only  from  Albany  and  the  sur- 
rounding country,  but  even  from  distant  parts  of  the 
state,  as  well  as  Vermont  and  Massachusetts.  Every 
train,  boat  and  omnibus  leading  into  the  city  was 
crowded  with  people  wishing  to  pay  their  last  tribute  of 
respect  to  him  who  until  recently  had  been  their  leader. 
This  opportunity  was  afforded  until  the  afternoon  of 
the  26th  when  at  four  the  special  train  furnished  by 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  271 

the  New  York  Central  Railroad  left  for  Buffalo,  the 
next  important  stop. 

They  were  now  passing  through  the  most  populous 
and  central  part  of  the  state,  and  the  scenes  enacted 
as  the  train  passed  through  the  larger  cities,  as  well  as 
the  smaller  towns,  were  but  a  repetition  of  those  ob- 
served along  the  Hudson.  Chauncey  M.  Depew,  then  a 
leading  politician  and  later  Senator  from  New  York, 
also  president  of  the  New  York  Central,  in  speaking  of 
the  journey  forty- four  years  later  said: 

"I  was  one  of  the  Committee  in  charge  of  the  funeral 
train  which  was  bearing  his  body  to  his  home,  while  on 
its  way  t*hrough  the  state  of  New  York.  The  hostile  hosts 
of  four  years  before  were  now  standing  about  the  road- 
way with  bared  heads,  weeping.  As  we  sped  over  the 
rails  at  night,  the  scene  was  the  most  pathetic  ever  wit- 
nessed. At  every  cross-roads  the  glare  of  innumerable 
torches  illuminated  the  whole  population  from  age  to 
infancy,  kneeling  on  the  ground,  and  their  clergymen 
leading  in  prayers  and  hymns." 

Buffalo  was  reached  at  seven  o'clock  the  following 
morning.  Here  the  body  was  taken  to  St.  James  Hall 
where  it  remained  until  a  late  hour  that  night,  viewed 
by  a  never-ending  procession  of  people,  after  which 
the  journey  was  resumed. 

Leaving  Buffalo  at  ten  the  special  arrived  at  Euclid 
Street  Station,  Cleveland,  Friday  morning  at  seven 
o'clock.  The  casket  was  conveyed  to  the  City  Park 
and  placed  in  a  building  erected  especially  for  the  pur- 
pose. Despite  a  heavy  rainfall  the  well-loved  features 
were  viewed  during  the  entire  day  at  the  estimated  rate 
of  one  hundred  and  eighty  persons  per  minute.  At  a 


272      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

late  hour  that  night  the  journey  was  resumed  on  a 
special  train  destined  for  Columbus,  the  state  capital. 

The  status  of  the  railroads  used  as  far  as  Cleveland 
by  the  funeral  party  was  exactly  the  same  as  in  1861, 
but  from  this  point,  due  to  the  different  route  traveled 
from  Cleveland  to  Indianapolis  by  way  of  Columbus, 
and  the  detour  via  Chicago,  it  is  essential  that  additional 
information  be  given. 

From  Cleveland  to  Columbus  the  Cleveland,  Colum- 
bus and  Cincinnati  Railroad  was  used.  This  is  now  a 
part  of  the  Cleveland,  Cincinnati,  Chicago  and  St. 
Louis  Railway,  commonly  called  the  "Big  Four."  De- 
parting from  Cleveland  at  twelve  o'clock  midnight, 
Columbus  was  reached  at  half  past  seven  the  next  morn- 
ing. Here  the  body  of  President  Lincoln  was  placed 
in  the  rotunda  of  the  Capitol,  where  it  was  again 
viewed  by  countless  mourners,  and  at  eight  o'clock  that 
night  the  party  left  for  Indianapolis  on  what  was  then 
the  Columbus  and  Indianapolis  Central  Railway,  now 
a  part  of  the  Pennsylvania. 

They  reached  Indianapolis  at  seven  o'clock  the  fol- 
lowing morning,  Sunday  the  30th.  The  body  of  Lincoln 
was  placed  in  the  State  House,  and  as  Indiana  had  been 
his  home  from  the  time  he  was  seven  years  old  until 
he  attained  his  majority,  the  affection  displayed  here 
was,  if  anything,  more  pronounced  than  before,  the 
falling  rain  undeterring  the  multitude  from  turning  out 
en  masse  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the  martyred  President. 
To  this  point  also  came  a  delegation  from  Kentucky, 
the  state  of  his  birth,  headed  by  Governor  Bramlette. 

Shortly  before  midnight  the  body  was  removed  to  the 
special  provided  for  the  party's  use  to  Chicago,  and  at 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  273 

the  hour  of  twelve  the  train  left  the  station.  Three  dif- 
ferent railroads  were  used  in  reaching  the  new  destina- 
tion :  the  Lafayette  and  Indianapolis  to  Lafayette ;  the 
Louisville,  New  Albany  and  Chicago  from  Lafayette  to 
Michigan  City;  and  thence  the  Michigan  Central  into 
Chicago.  The  first  named  road  is  now  a  part  of  the 
"Big  Four" ;  the  next  a  part  of  the  Chicago,  Indianapo- 
lis and  Louisville  Railway;  while  the  latter  is  still 
operated  under  the  same  name. 

The  following  morning  at  eleven  o'clock  Chicago  was 
reached  and  the  remains  were  conveyed  to  the  rotunda 
of  the  Court  House.  All  Chicago  and  its  environs  knew 
Lincoln  and  loved  him.  He  had  been  a  frequent  visitor 
to  this  city  before  his  country  called  him  away  to 
Washington.  Here  he  had  received  his  first  nomination 
for  president,  in  1860;  here  also  in  the  courts  he  had 
been  called  upon  to  display  his  great  legal  talents. 

So  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  "taken  all  in  all," 
as  the  Chicago  and  Alton  management  say  in  a  recent 
statement,  "Chicago  made  a  deeper  impression  upon 
those  who  had  been  with  the  funeral  from  the  first  than 
any  one  of  the  ten  cities  passed  through  before  had 
done.  It  was  to  be  expected  that  such  would  be  the  case, 
yet,  seeing  how  other  cities  had  honored  the  funeral, 
there  seemed  to  be  no  room  for  more,  and  the  eastern 
members  of  the  cortege  could  not  repress  surprise  when 
they  saw  how  Chicago  and  the  Northwest  came,  with 
one  accord,  with  tears  and  with  offerings,  to  bury  'this 
Duncan'  who  had  'been  so  clear  in  his  great  office.'  " 

The  body  remained  in  Chicago  two  days,  the  special 
train  provided  by  the  Chicago  and  Alton  Railroad 
leaving  the  city  at  half  past  nine  Tuesday  night  for 


274      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

Springfield.  And  at  nine  o'clock  the  following  morning, 
an  hour  after  the  scheduled  time,  Lincoln's  home  town 
was  reached,  and  the  journey,  so  far  as  the  railroad  was 
concerned,  was  over.  It  was  now  Wednesday,  May  the 
3rd. 

This  had  been  a  most  remarkable  journey.  The  dis- 
tance traveled  was  almost  seventeen  hundred  miles. 
Miss  Tarbell  has  well  said  of  the  "outpouring  at  vil- 
lages, country  cross-roads  and  farms"  that  "from 
Washington  to  Springfield  the  train  entered  scarcely  a 
town  that  the  bells  were  not  tolling,  the  minute  guns 
firing,  the  stations  draped,  and  all  the  spaces  beside 
the  tracks  crowded  with  people  with  uncovered  heads. 

"At  many  points  arches  were  erected  over  the  tracks ; 
at  others  the  bridges  were  wreathed  from  end  to  end 
in  crape  and  evergreens  and  flags.  And  this  was  not  in 
the  towns  alone;  every  farmhouse  by  which  the  train 
passed  became  for  the  time  a  funeral  house;  the  plow 
was  left  in  the  furrow,  crape  was  on  the  door,  the  neigh- 
bors were  gathered  and  those  who  watched  from  the 
train  as  it  flew  by  could  see  groups  of  weeping  women, 
of  men  with  uncovered  heads,  sometimes  a  minister 
among  them,  his  arms  raised  in  prayer. 

"Night  did  not  hinder  them.  Great  bonfires  were  built 
in  lonely  country-sides,  around  which  the  farmers 
waited  patiently  to  salute  their  dead.  At  the  towns  the 
length  of  the  train  was  lit  by  blazing  torches.  Storm  as 
well  as  darkness  was  unheeded.  Much  of  the  journey  was 
made  through  the  rain,  in  fact,  but  the  people  seemed 
to  have  forgotten  all  things  but  Abraham  Lincoln,  the 
man  they  loved  and  trusted,  was  passing  by  for  the 
last  time." 


TIME     TJLBI-E 


PRE3SIDEMT 

FROM 

CHICAGO    TO    S^I^HSTO-FIBLID, 

Tuendav,    May     •->,    lJ»<<S„-». 


cnicAco 

FOKT  WAYNE  JUNCTION 

BRIDGEPORT 

SUMMIT 

JOYS 

LEMONT 

.; LOtKPOKT 

Tol.IET 

; ELWOOJ) 

HAMPTON 

WILMINGTON 

STEWARTS  OHOVE 

BRACEYILLE 

GARDNER 

DWKiJIT 

ODELL 

... CAYUGA : 

PONTIAC 

OCOYA 

...CHENOA 

LEXINGTON 

TOW  AND  A 

.ILL.  CENTKAL  I!.  1!.,  JUNCTION. 

BLOOMIXGTOS 

S1IIHLEY'.:.. 

KINKS    <5ROVE 

MeLEAN 

ATLANTA 

LAWN    DALE 

LINCOLN 

Blto A  DWELL 

ELKHART 

WILL1AMSYILLK 

SHERMAN 

SANGAMON 

.: KPIUNOKIELD 


1.7 

1.7 

1.8 

12.0   | 

8..") 

17.0  ! 

5.0 

°."i  5   1 

s  0 

46,4    i 

8.7 

48.0    1 

2.3 

">3.0 

4..-, 

58.0 

4.8 

01.4 

3.5 

65.0 

'  3.8 

74.0 

0.0 

82.0 

8.0 

87.4 

5.2 

*)•">  3 

•  5.0 

<I7.S 

5.0 

102.6 

4.7 

110.6 

8.0 

118.5 

7.i» 

124.0 

'  5.7 

126.0 

2.0 

133.0 

6.8 

136.5 

3.6 

14L4 

4.x 

146.0 

4.8 

130.0 

4.0 

136.8 

104.0 

7.1 

107.0 

3.7 

173.5 

178.3 

••  4.H 

180.0 

2.1 

ixr».o 

5.0 

l«>:;"iS 
11:18 
11:33 
ri^K 

I2.KJ 


12:31 
1:10 

1:3S 


The  following  instructions  are  to  \h:  observed  for  the  ahov«  trnirt : 

1.  All  other  Trains  on  this  Road  must  he  kept  thirty  minute*  out  of  the  way  of  the 
time  of  this  Train. 

2.  All  Telegraph  Stations  must  be  kept  open  daring  the  passage  <«f  this  Train. 

3.  A  Guard  with  one  red  and  one  white  light  will  la;  stationed  at  all  road  <-r.,-~in-s 
Ly  night;  and  witha  white  flag  draped   by  day,  or  after  daylight,  on  \V<  <!n<  s<fi.y 


C,!!, 


by  tin-  F 


4.  A  Pil»»l    Kngine  will  run  upon  this  time,  which  in 
Train,  ten  nannies  behind. 

5.  Pih.t  En-ine  must  not  pass  any  Telegraph  Station,  unless  a  white  ling  bv  dav,  or 
oiie  red  and  one  white  light  by  night,  shall  he  exhibited,  which  will  higmfv  "flml 

the  Funeral  Train  has  passed 'the  nearest  Telegraph  Station,     la  the  uh,,"iire.of .  .'( 
said  si-jnals,  the  Pilot   Kngine  will  stop  until    definite  information  is  received  in 
regard  to  the  Funeral  Train. 

6.  •  Tlie  Funeral  Train   will   pass  all  Stations  -Jowly,  at -which  time  the 'hell  of   the    •    ! 

Locomotive  must  be  tolled. 

By  order  of  Krsvkt   Hut.,  w»n  K  (ti  skr.u  i>-  (J.  M<  Ci  r.i.i  m,  2d  l>iv.,  in  charge  of 
Military'  Railroads. 

ROBERT    HALE, 

U^^^iU^^— - 


Courtesy,   Chicago   <&    Alton  Railroad 

THE   TIME   TABLE    OF    THE    "FUNERAL    TRAIN5" 

On  its  run  from  Chicago  to  Springfield,  May  2,  1865.  The 
slow  time  and  extraordinary  precautions  taken  may  be  noted 
on  the  above  card. 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  275 

Gobright,  a  Washington  newspaper  correspondent 
who  accompanied  the  party,  says :  "Much  of  our  trav- 
eling was  at  night,  throughout  which,  no  matter  at 
what  hour,  crowds  gathered  on  the  roads  to  see  the  train 
on  its  onward  progress ;  and  whenever  we  halted,  flowers 
were  brought  into  the  funeral  car,  and  placed  upon  the 
coffin  by  the  delicate  hands  which  had  culled  them  for 
this  purpose.  It  would  have  been  impossible  to  render 
greater  honors  to  any  mortal  remains.  The  funeral  was 
continuous  from  Washington  to  Oak  Ridge  Cemetery, 
near  Springfield,  Illinois." 

Concerning  the  funeral  car  many  mistaken  ideas 
have  been  widely  circulated.  The  following  excerpt, 
taken  from  Success  Magazine,  June,  1900,  summarizes 
the  popular  and  mistaken  notion: 

"In  the  city  of  Omaha,  in  the  yards  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,  is  lying  a  relic  which  should 
be  dear  to  the  heart  of  every  American,  even  as  'Old 
Ironsides'  itself.    - 

"This  is  nothing  less  than  the  remains  of  the  car 
designed  by  himself,  in  which  President  Lincoln  used 
to  go  to  the  front  during  the  latter  part  of  the  Civil 
War,  and  which  was  afterwards  used  as  a  funeral  coach 
for  his  murdered  remains.  Though  now  but  a  mass  of 
decayed  wood  and  rusted  iron,  when  constructed  by  the 
military  shops  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  in  1864,  it  was  the 
marvel  of  the  railroad,  and  the  most  elaborate  piece 
of  workmanship  on  wheels. 

"To  make  the  mahogany  framework  proof  against 
the  bullets  of  the  Confederates,  or  assassins,  the  car 
was  iron-clad,  armored  plate  being  set  beneath  its  up- 
holstered sides.  One  of  its  largest  compartments,  the 


276      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

President's  study,  contained  a  sofa  fifteen  feet  long,  on 
which  he  rested  and  slept  on  his  journeys  to  and  fro. 

"To  Booker  T.  Washington  belongs  the  honor  of 
starting  a  project  for  the  restoration  and  preservation 
to  the  nation  of  this  most  interesting  relic  of  the  last 
chapter  of  the  life  of  the  great  martyred  President. 
Mr.  Washington  heard  of  the  car  when  in  Omaha,  and, 
with  Dr.  O.  M.  Ricketts,  set  the  ball  rolling. 

"Just  what  terms  can  be  made  for  its  purchase  from 
the  railroad  company  has  not  yet  been  ascertained,  but 
it  is  thought  that  it  will  donate  the  car  to  the  city, 
provided  an  agreement  is  made  to  have  it  preserved  and 
a  building  furnished  for  that  purpose." 

Miss  Antoinette  L.  King,  Librarian  of  the  Public 
Library  at  Pittston,  Pennsylvania,  has  furnished  the 
writer  with  the  following  subjoined  statement  signed 
by  her  father,  Sidney  D.  King,  in  1903,  three  years 
before  his  death,  which  is  self-explanatory : 

"An  item  has  been  going  the  rounds  of  the  news- 
papers lately  to  the  effect  that  what  was  called  'Presi- 
dent Lincoln's  coach'  is  lying  in  a  state  of  dilapidation 
in  the  yards  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  at  Omaha, 
Nebraska,  and  that  Booker  T.  Washington  has  started 
a  plan  for  its  restoration  and  preservation  as  a  relic 
of  the  Civil  War.  It  is  described  as  a  car  'designed  by 
himself,  in  which  President  Lincoln  used  to  go  to  the 
front  the  latter  part  of  the  war,'  and  that  it  was  'iron- 
clad— armored  plate  being  set  beneath  its  upholstered 
sides.' 

"This  is  a  mistake.  The  car  was  built  by  the  author- 
ities of  the  United  States  Military  Railroad — a  name 
which  covered  parts  of  the  'Manassas  Gap,'  the  'Loudon 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  277 

and  Hampshire,'  and  the  'Orange  and  Alexandria'  Rail- 
roads, which  were  confiscated  by  the  Government.  The 
headquarters,  roundhouse,  car  shops  and  machine  shops 
were  inside  the  stockade  at  Alexandria,  Virginia,  and 
under  charge  of  Colonel  D.  C.  McCallum. 

"I  was  Assistant  Master  Car  Builder  at  that  time, 
was  in  the  shops  constantly  while  the  car  was  being 
built,  and  am  certain  that  no  armor  was  used  in  its 
construction.  Any  one  who  knew  the  habits  of  Mr. 
Lincoln  would  scout  the  idea  of  his  designing  an  ar- 
mored car  of  such  luxurious  appointments  for  his  own 
use  in  going  to  the  front.  Just  when  the  fact  of  its 
being  built  came  to  his  knowledge  I  do  not  know,  but 
as  I  recollect  it,  some  of  the  New  York  newspapers 
opposed  to  his  administration  took  up  the  matter  and 
presented  it  in  a  very  unfavorable  light.  How  much 
this  influenced  him  is,  of  course,  conjectural,  but  in 
point  of  fact  he  utterly  refused  to  accept  the  car  or 
ride  in  it  during  his  lifetime.  It  stood-  in  the  shops  for 
some  months  at  least,  after  making  one  trial  trip.  It 
was  really  magnificent  for  those  days,  and  every  avail- 
able convenience  was  used,  but  present-day  travelers 
would  consider  it  very  common.  The  woodwork  was  of 
black  walnut,  the  upholstery  dark  green  plush,  with 
curtains  of  light  green  silk ;  the  ceiling  was  paneled  with 
crimson  silk,  gathered  into  a  rosette  in  the  center  of 
each  panel.  The  American  eagle  with  the  national  col- 
ors appeared  in  a  large  medallion  on  each  side  of  the 
exterior.  As  first  built  it  was  mounted  on  four  trucks, 
but  later  two  were  taken  out. 

"When  the  car  made  its  first  real  journey,  that  from 
Washington  to  Springfield,  Illinois,  bearing  the  dead 


278      LINCOLN  AND  THE  RAILROADS 

body  of  the  President  to  its  final  resting  place,  it  was 
elaborately  draped  in  black  cloth,  with  silver  bullion 
fringe,  silver  spangled  stars  and  large  silver  tassels 
about  nine  inches  long  and  three  inches  in  diameter. 
There  were  also  many  black  tassels  used  about  the  biers 
on  which  rested  the  two  coffins — that  of  the  President 
and  his  son. 

"These  'funeral  trappings'  were  removed  on  the  re- 
turn of  the  car  to  Alexandria  and  divided  up  as  relics. 
I  got  one  of  the  large  tassels,  and  some  of  each  of  the 
other  decorations  and  put  them  in  a  case  made  of  the 
same  materials  as  the  trimming  of  the  car. 

"What  disposal  was  made  of  the  car  when  the  con- 
fiscated roads  were  given  back  and  the  U.  S.  Military 
Railroad  was  only  a  name,  I  do  not  know,  for,  of  course, 
we  Northern  men  were  'out  of  a  job'  and  came  home.. 

"It  is  to  be  hoped  the  plan  for  preserving  the  car 
may  be  carried  out,  for  it  is  a  genuine  relic  of  war 
times,  even  if  it  did  not  go  to  the  front,  and  it  seems 
to  me  the  resolute  self-denial  of  the  President,  in  not 
using  it  during  his  lifetime,  and  his  one  journey  in  it, 
when  his  wearied  body  was  past  the  need  of  earthly  lux- 
ury, are  striking  incidents  in  even  such  a  notable  career 
as  that  of  Lincoln." 

Let  us  conclude  this  review  of  Lincoln  the  traveler 
with  a  glimpse  of  the  final  scene  at  Springfield.  He  is 
at  home  again  among  his  own  folks,  the  neighbors  who 
were  wont  to  hail  him  familiarly  with  "Howdy,  Abe!" 
Now  as  the  casket  lies  in  state  in  the  Capitol,  the  ones 
who  pass  by  are  the  most  sincere  mourners  of  all.  They 
look  for  a  last  time  at  the  homely  features,  and  more 


THE  LAST  JOURNEY  279 

than  one  mutters,  "Goodjby,  Abe!"  under  his  breath. 

Then  the  coffin-lid  is  screwed  down  for  the  last  time. 
A  simple  funeral  service  is  held,  and  the  minister  chooses 
as  part  of  his  eulogy  the  reading  of  Lincoln's  Second 
Inaugural  Address.  The  President  is  viewing  the  War 
as  a  fait  accomplit.  The  struggle  is  at  an  end.  But 
there  is  no  hatred  of  the  vanquished  in  his  soul.  He  views 
a  reunited  country — the  Union  that  he  loved. 

"With  malice  toward  none,  with  charity  for  all,  with 
firmness  in  the  right,  as  God  gives  us  to  see  the  right, 
let  us  strive  on  to  finish  the  work  we  are  in ;  to  bind  up 
the  nation's  wounds;  to  care  for  him  who  shall  have 
borne  the  battle,  and  for  his  widow  and  for  his  orphan ; 
to  do  all  which  may  achieve  and  cherish  a  just  and 
lasting  peace  among  ourselves  and  with  all  nations." 


NOTES 


NOTES 


CHAPTER    I 


Compiled  in  the  main  from  accounts  of  hungerford,  3- 
12;  meyer,  308-318;  ridpath  n,  1571,  and  m,  2143-2144; 
and  data  furnished  by  Mr.  E.  L.  Bangs,  Historian  of  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  Company. 

CHAPTER    IV 

Account  of  the  Tenth  General  Assembly  of  the  Illinois 
Legislature  and  Abraham  Lincoln's  relations  thereto  com- 
piled from  nicolay  and  hay  i,  131-139;  linder,  55-64; 
tarbell  I,  132-146;  lamon's  "life,"  193-201;  rothschild, 
211-222;  herndon's  "lincoln"  i,  172-177;  Arnold's  "life," 
50-51;  and  Whitney's  "citizen,"  129-140. 

For  preliminaries  leading  up  thereto  as  well  as  attendant 
results,  we  have  drawn  upon  million,  8-26;  meyer,  509; 
and  pease,  191-203,  and  212-229. 

Edward  D.  Baker,  later  United  States  Representative 
from  Illinois  and  Senator  from  Oregon,  losing  his  life  in  1861 
at  the  battle  of  Ball's  Bluff,  has  sometimes  been  mentioned 
as  among  the  celebrities  present  at  this  notorious  session  of 
the  state  legislature.  This  is  an  error.  At  a  special  election 
held  July  1,  1837,  he  was  chosen  to  represent  the  County  of 
Sangamon  in  place  of  Daniel  Stone,  resigned,  and  took  his 
seat  at  the  special  session  called  by  the  Governor  shortly 
thereafter. 

chapter  v 

Facts  in  connection  with  the  history,  projection  and  opera- 
tion of  road  compiled  from  McConnel;  also  hungerford,  26- 

283 


284  NOTES 

27,  and  memoranda  furnished  by  President  J.  E.  Taussig,  of 
the  Wabash  Railway  Company. 


CHAPTER    VI 

For  history  of  road  see  meyer,  518-547;  Lincoln's  activi- 
ties before  legislature  quoted  from  drennan;  Anderson;  and 
rantoul. 


CHAPTER    VII 

Rail  and  water  transportation  data  compiled  from  infor- 
mation furnished  by: 

President  W.  L.  Mapother,  of  the  Louisville  and  Nash- 
ville Railroad  Company. 

Secretary  C.  W.  Woolford,  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio 
Railroad  Company. 

Chief  Engineer  A.  C.  Shand,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road  System. 

President  J.  E.  Pearson,  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven 
and  Hartford  Railroad  Company. 

President  J.  H.  Hustis,  of  the  Boston  and  Maine  Rail- 
road Company. 

Treasurer  F.  H.  Ratcliffe,  of  the  Boston  and  Albany  Rail- 
road Company. 

Mr.  C.  F.  Smith,  General  Superintendent  Passenger  Trans- 
portation, and  Secretary  E.  F.  Stephenson,  of  the  New  York 
Central  Railroad  Company. 

Itinerary  and  probable  route  used  by  Lincoln  in  attending 
iirst  session  of  the  Thirtieth  Congress  furnished  by  Dr.  L.  D. 
Carman,  of  Washington,  D.  C. 

Itinerary  of  Lincoln's  speechmaking  tour  in  Massachu- 
setts   as    given    by    herndon    and    weik    i,    281-294*;    and 

SCHOULER. 


NOTES  285 

Original  letter  from  Lincoln  to  Thaddeus  Stevens  on  file  in 
Library  of  Congress. 

Facts  in  connection  with  Lincoln's  visit  to  Cape  May  in 
1849  given  the  writer  by  Senator  Lewis  T.  Stevens,  of  Cape 
May,  New  Jersey.  Senator  Stevens  says  that  "about  twenty- 
five  years  ago  as  I  was  going  over  some  old  account  books,  in 
order  to  make  room  for  more  apparent  valuable  present 
things,  I  found  the  register  of  the  Mansion  House,  kept  by 
my  grandfather  from  1835  to  1851;  and  one  day  about  twenty 
years  ago  ran  across  the  name  of  Lincoln.  ...  I  met  Senator 
Irick  in  1908  in  Trenton,  and  told  him  about  the  hotel  regis- 
ter, and  he  said  it  was  the  real  Lincoln,  who  was  a  friend 
of  his  father,  and  that  he  was  twelve  years  old  at  the  time 
and  remembered  it  very  well/' 


CHAPTER    VIII 

The  cases  cited  in  the  order  of  their  appearance  before 
the  Illinois  Supreme  Court  reported  in  Illinois  supreme 
court  xvn,  291-299;  xvm,  570-577;  xix,  136-141,  and 
166-167;  and  xxvii,  64-70. 

For    Illinois    Central    official    publications    see    drennanj 

ANDERSON;    ILLINOIS    CENTRAL. 

Copies  of  letters  from  Lincoln  and  Judge  Thomas  to  T.  R. 
Webber  furnished  by  Mrs.  Mary  E.  Webber,  daughter-in-law 
of  Mr.  Webber.  Lincoln's  letter  also  found  in  uncollected 
letters,  47. 

Pages  67-68,  quotation  from  Herriott  in  herriott's 
"iowa,"  91-92. 

Acount  of  President  Lincoln's  attitude  towards  Illinois 
Central  gathered  from  data  furnished  by  Generals  H.  L. 
Rogers  and  E.  H.  Agnew,  of  the  Quartermaster  General's 
Department,  U.  S.  Army;  and  Mr.  Marvin  Hughitt,  of  the 
Chicago  and  Northwestern  Railway,  then  holding  position  of 


286  NOTES 

Master  of  Transportation  of  the  Illinois  Central,  with  head- 
quarters at  Centralia. 

CHAPTER    IX 

For  various  accounts  of  this  case  see  herndon's  "lincoln" 
ii,  351-353;  herndon  and  weik  ii,  20-22;  weik,  152-155; 
lamon's  "life,"  331-332;  curtis,  72;  tarbell  i,  259-260; 
barrett  i,  118;  Whitney's  "citizen,"  184-185;  roths- 
child,  166-171;  Richards,  70-72;  hill,  252-254,  and  316- 

319;       ILLINOIS       CENTRAL,      DRENNAN ;       ANDERSON;       BARTON'S 

"life"  i,  308.  For  a  very  able  recent  discussion  see  town- 


chapter  x 

For  the  information  used  in  this  chapter  dealing  with 
Lincoln  and  the  predecessors  of  the  Chicago  and  Alton  road, 
we  are  indebted  to  President  W.  G.  Bierd,  of  the  Chicago  and 
Alton  Railroad  Company,  and  Vice-President  Dwight  C. 
Morgan  of  the  Pittsburgh  and  Shawmut  Railroad  Company; 
cases  cited  reported  in  Illinois  supreme  court  xiii,  504— 
514,  514-516;  xiv,  190-193,  211-213;  and  xxi,  96-98. 

Data  in  connection  with  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad 
case  furnished  by  the  following  officials  of  the  Baltimore  and 
Ohio  Railroad  Company:  Secretary  C.  W.  Woolford,  Mr. 
Morison  R.  Waite,  General  Solicitor  Western  Lines,  and  Hon. 
James  M.  Graham,  District  Attorney  at  Springfield,  Illinois; 
and  Mr.  S.  T.  Burnett,  Clerk  of  the  United  States  District 
Court  at  Springfield.  Letter  from  Lincoln  to  Koerner,  page 
90,  found  in  uncollected  letters,  77. 

CHAPTER    XI 

For  recital  of  events  leading  up  to  case,  as  well  as  the  trial 
itself,  the  writer  has   drawn  upon  meese,  46-49;  Richards, 


NOTES  287 

30-38;  herriott's  "iowa,"  89-90;  tarbell  i,  275-277;  hill 
259-261;  rock  island,  16-18;  palimpsest;  wharton,  3;  and 

SALTONSTALL. 

Hitt's  report  of  Lincoln's  argument  found  in  tarbell  n, 
324-330;  complete  works  II,  340-354;  palimpsest:  copy- 
also  furnished  by  General  Solicitor  W.  F.  Dickinson,  of  the 
Chicago,  Rock  Island  and  Pacific  Railway  Company. 

For  Mrs.  Judd's  recollections,  see  oldroyd,  520-523;  and 
more  briefly  weik,  73-75. 

Closing  paragraph,  pages  115-116,  quoted  from  "people 
of  ILLINOIS,"  606. 

chapter  xii 

For  data  in  connection  with  two  suits  against  predecessors 
of  Wabash  Railway,  pages  117-121,  we  are  indebted  to  Mr. 
Jesse  W.  Weik,  of  Greencastle,  Indiana. 

The  four  cases  cited  carried  before  the  state's  highest  tri- 
bunal reported  in  Illinois  supreme  court  xvii,  123-131; 
xix,  174-183,  and  353-376;  and  xxi,  292-294;  additional 
data  received  from  Mr.  O.  M.  Spencer,  General  Counsel  of 
the  Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy  Railroad  Company;  and 
Mr.  H.  A.  Worcester,  Vice  President,  and  Mr.  Alan  Rogers, 
Publicity  Manager,  of  the  Cleveland,  Cincinnati,  Chicago  and 
St.  Louis  Railway  Company. 

chapter  xiii 

Account  of  Coming's  offer  transcribed  from  merwin. 

Mr.  Jesse  W.  Weik  informs  the  writer  that  he  is  of  the 
opinion  that  he  heard  the  story  long  ago,  but  his  recollection 
of  it  is  vague.  He  adds,  however,  that  he  did  not  hear  of  it 
from  Herndon  nor  other  Springfield  residents.  This  would  not 
be  surprising,  for  evidently  Lincoln  had  no  confidants  in  the 


288  NOTES 

matter,  as  was  his  custom,  and  referred  to  it  to  Merwin  only 
on  account  of  the  latter's  knowledge  of  the  offer. 

CHAPTER    XIV 

Carl  Schurz's  description  of  Lincoln  as  a  passenger,  pages 
137-139,  as  given  in  schurz's  "reminiscences"  and  schurz's 
"debate." 

Howard  White's  reminiscence  of  his  fellow-passenger, 
pages  139-141,  found  in  white,  24-25;  and  White  in  hern- 
don  and  WEIK  II,  111-112. 

Henry  Villard's  interview  in  a  box  car,  pages  141-143, 
quoted  from  villard. 

The  account  of  B.  F.  Smith's  impressions  of  the  rival  as- 
pirants, pages  143—144,  appears  in  stevens,  26. 

The  Chicago  and  Alton  conductor's  recollections  of  his  dis- 
tinguished passengers,  pages  144-145,  are  to  be  found  in 
collier's. 

The  reminiscences  of  the  young  and  impressionable  secre- 
tary of  the  Champaign  County  Republican  Committee  in 
1858,  pages  145-149,  are  taken  from  Browne's  "lincoln" 
ii,  170-196. 

chapter  xv 

Page  151:  for  Whitney's  account  of  the  circuit  riding,  see 
Whitney's  "citizen,"  192-193;  and  Whitney's  "circuit," 
41. 

Page  151:  for  account  of  Michigan  trip,  see  brown,  487- 
488;  campbell,  287-288;  banyon,  37;  and  Banyon  to  the 
writer.  Concerning  the  alleged  stop-off  at  Niles,  Mr.  Banyon 
writes:  "All  trains  over  the  Michigan  Central  stopped  at 
Niles,  and  Lincoln  would  want  to  get  out  and  stretch  his  legs 
a  bit  while  the  train  was  taking  on  wood  and  water.  Kala- 
mazoo is  only  about  forty  miles  from  Niles,  and  Lincoln  would 


NOTES  289 

want  to  get  a  view  of  the  place  as  the  Carey  Mission  was 
close  by  and  had  brought  Niles  a  more  than  state-wide  fame 
and  reputation/' 

Page  152:  for  Lincoln's  invasion  of  Iowa  see  herriott's 
"iowa,"  19-21;  also  communications  to  the  writer  from  Dr. 
Russell  H.  Conwell  and  Prof.  Herriott. 

Page  152;  see  McCulloch  in  rice,  414;  herriott's  "iowa," 
91-96;  ryan,  35-101;  and  jackson,  134-135,  for  visits  to 
Indiana,  Kansas,  Ohio  and  Wisconsin  in  proper  sequence. 

Page  153:  for  an  extended  account  of  Lincoln's  trip  to 
Kansas  in  November,  1859,  see  Kansas,  536-552. 

Page  153:  see  barton's  "influence"  for  an  admirable  ac- 
count of  Chicago's  influence  upon  Lincoln. 

Page  154:  for  the  statement  concerning  Lincoln's  appear- 
ance before  the  St.  Louis  Courts,  we  are  indebted  to  the  late 
Mr.  Charles  W.  Moores,  of  the  Indianapolis  Bar. 

Page  155-156:  story  of  Lincoln  as  a  "hackman"  given  in 
tarbell  i,  235;  and  more  briefly  in  pickett. 

Pr.ges  156-157:  see  emerson,  9,  for  Lincoln's  bit  of  philoso- 
phy to  his  fellow-attorney  in  Cincinnati. 

Pages  157-158:  for  Lincoln's  visit  to  Evanston,  see  currey, 
10-11. 

Pages  158-159:  see  cannon's  "reminiscence,"  and  can- 
non's "home  state,"  for  account  of  "Uncle  Joe's"  first  meet- 
ing with  Lincoln.  Cannon  gives  the  time  as  June,  1860.  In 
this  he  is  in  error:  the  convention  opened  May  10th. 

CHAPTER    XVII 

Compiled  from  Whitney's  "circuit,"  494-496;  Whitney's 
"citizen,"  294;  cannon's  "reminiscence";  cannon's  "home 
state";  cannon's  "lincoln";  lamon's  "life,"  462-465; 
and  weik,  293-297:  railroad  data  from  information  in  posses- 
sion of  the  writer. 


290  NOTES 

CHAPTER    XVIII 

Itinerary,  dates,  etc.,  based  on  contemporary  newspaper 
accounts  as  found  in  file  of  the  Philadelphia  Public  Ledger 
for  February,  1861,  in  Pennsylvania  State  Library  at  Harris- 
burg,  Pa.;  coggeshall,  24-80;  power,  40-53,  and  map  fac- 
ing page  112;  and  Raymond,  131-158.  The  railroad  itinerary 
as  reconstructed  back  to  that  period  compiled  from  data  fur- 
nished by  Dr.  Carman  and  the  following  officials  of  the  var- 
ious lines  under  investigation: 

Secretary  C.  W.  Woolford,  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio 
Railroad   Company. 

Mr.  Alan  Rogers,  Publicity  Manager  of  the  Cleveland, 
Cincinnati,  Chicago  and  St.  Louis  Railway  Company. 

President  L.  F.  Loree,  of  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Com- 
pany. 

Mr.  C.  F.  Smith,  General  Superintendent  Passenger  Trans- 
portation, of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  Company. 

Mr.  A.  C.  Shand,  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  System. 

President  J.  E.  Taussig,  of  the  Wabash  Railway  Company. 
Pages  176—177:  excerpt  from  contemporary  issue  of  Spring- 
field Journal  as  preserved  by  weik,  314;  and  in  part  by  tar- 
bell  i,  410-411. 

Pages    179-180:   for  reminiscences   of  brakeman  Ross,  see 

TARBELL  I,  411-412. 

Concerning  the  farewell  address,  we  have  used  the  version 
as  given  in  nicolay  and  hay  hi,  291,  written  shortly  after 
the  train  left  Springfield,  partly  by  Lincoln  himself  and 
partly  by  Nicolay  at  Lincoln's  dictation.  This  we  have  from 
Mr.  Weik,  who  in  his  "Real  Lincoln"  quotes  at  length  from 
a  conversation  he  once  had  with  Nicolay,  and  it  is  this  ac- 
count which  we  have  used  in  narrating  the  circumstances  of 
the  writing  of  the  address.  Aside  from  this  fact,  the  version 


NOTES  291 

rings  more  true  to  form  than  any  of  the  others  which  bear 
the  marks  of  reliability. 

There  seem  to  have  been  three  authentic  versions  published, 
all  of  which  claims  must  be  recognized:  the  Nicolay  and  Hay 
version,  accepted  by  Miss  Tarbell,  Rankin,  Roberts,  etc.;  the 
version  published  in  the  current  Springfield  papers  as  given 
by  Herndon,  Weik,  Lamon,  Barrett,  Stoddard,  etc.;  and  the 
version  which  Henry  Villard,  the  correspondent  on  the  special 
train,  wired  from  the  first  telegraph  station  he  could  reach 
east  of  Springfield,  which  is  practically  the  same  that  Bate- 
man  claims  to  have  noted  down  in  the  privacy  of  his  own 
office  from  memory  after  the  departure  of  the  train,  and  ac- 
cepted by  Holland,  Birch,  etc. 

A  careful  study  of  the  scenes  attending  the  departure  of 
the  President-elect  at  this  time  is  profitable.  See  bateman, 
34-38;  villard;  lamon 's  "recollections,"  30-32;  lamon's 
"life,"  505-507;  nicolay  and  hay  hi,  290-291;  Birch 
in  ward,  232-233;  rankin's  "recollections,"  221-224; 
rankin  and  clark;  and  Springfield  Journal  as  given 
in  weik,  309—314,  all  narrators  present  on  the  occasion; 
also  stoddard,  198-199;  herndon's  "lincoln"  hi,  485— 
487;  barrett  i,  260-261 ;  Arnold's  "life,"  183;  Whitney's 
"citizen,"  294-295;  Holland,  253-255;  tarbell  i,  410- 
411;  Roberts,  104-107. 

Several  minor  discrepancies  have  been  noted,  such  as  the 
condition  of  the  weather.  Nicolay  and  Hay,  who  were  atten- 
tive spectators,  say  that  during  the  course  of  the  address 
"the  bystanders  bared  their  heads  to  the  falling  snow-flakes"; 
while  correspondent  Villard  says  that  "it  was  a  clear,  crisp 
winter  day";  whereas  the  preponderance  of  evidence,  includ- 
ing the  current  newspaper  accounts,  clearly  shows  that  a  heavy 
rain  was  falling  while  Lincoln  was  speaking. 

The  size  of  the  crowd  has  been  variously  estimated.  Ob- 
serve what  those  present  had  to  say  in  later  years.  Bateman 


292  NOTES 

speaks  of  the  "immense  crowd  assembled/'  while  Villard, 
with  one  of  his  memory  lapses,  says  that  "only  about  one  hun- 
dred people,  mostly  personal  friends/'  were  there.  On  the 
other  hand,  Nicolay  and  Hay  state  that  a  "throng  of  at  least  a 
thousand  of  his  neighbors  .  .  .  had  come  to  bid  him  good- 
bye"; Lamon  narrates  that  "long  before  eight  o'clock  a 
great  mass  of  people  had  collected";  while  Rankin  says  that 
"there  were,  I  suppose,  some  two  hundred  people  present." 
Lincoln's  partner,  who  was  not  there  himself,  speaks  of  a 
"goodly  throng,"  a  safe  statement  to  be  accepted,  for  again 
turning  to  the  local  Journal  we  learn  that  "hundreds  of  his 
fellow-citizens"  were  there  to  tender  him  their  respects. 

CHAPTER    XIX 

Abraham  Lincoln's  relations  with  General  Dodge  and  the 
projection  of  the  Union  Pacific  are  compiled  chiefly  from 
dodge's  "recollections";  dodge's  "Lincoln";  dodge's 
"union  pacific";  dodge's  "personal  recollections": 
Dodge  in  herriott's  "memories,"  21-24;  herriott's  "iowa," 
93-96 ;  and  Union  Pacific  Magazine. 

See  acts  of  congress  for  legislation  relating  thereto,  with 
the  exception  of  the  law  establishing  the  gauge  of  the  road. 
Copy  of  the  latter  furnished  by  Mr.  George  Wickham,  Assis- 
tant Commissioner,  General  Land  Office,  Department  of  the 
Interior;  data  dealing  with  the  introduction,  progress  and 
final  passage  of  this  act  furnished  by  Dr.  Carman,  from  re- 
searches in  the  files  of  the  Congressional  Record  in  the  Li- 
brary of  Congress. 

For  opinions  of  contemporary  legislators  quoted  concern- 
ing act  of  1864  see  blaine  i,  507-509;  Sherman's  "recol- 
lections" i,  334-335;  and  cole,  178-179. 

All  presidential  papers  given  in  chapter  on  file  in  Office  of 


NOTES  293 

Commissioner  of  Railroads,  Washington,  and  here  published 
for  first  time,  except  the  following: 

Page  203:  Order  fixing  eastern  terminus,  dated  November 
17,  1863,  in  dodge's  "recollections,"  8;  and  extract  from 
same  in  dodge's  "union  pacific";  but  not  found  in  com- 
plete works,  nor  supplementary  uncollected  letters, 
dodge's  "recollections"  incorrectly  give  this  as  the  second 
order. 

Pages  203-204:  Letter  to  General  Dix,  dated  December  1, 
1863;  in  complete  works  ix,  214-215. 

Pages  204-205;  Order  elaborating  on  eastern  terminus, 
dated  March  7,  1864;  on  file  at  Washington.  Extract  from 
same,  in  garbled  form,  in  dodge's  "union  pacific,"  10  and 
51. 

Pages  205-206:  Message  to  Senate,  March  9,  1864;  in 
complete  works  x,  32-33. 

In  connection  with  the  alleged  incident  of  President  Lin- 
coln determining  upon  a  certain  western  location,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  provisions  of  the  original  act,  pages  214-216, 
we  quote  below  from  the  latter  part  of  section  9  of  the  Act 
of  July  1,  1862: 

"The  Central  Pacific  Railroad  Company  of  California,  a 
corporation  existing  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  California, 
are  hereby  authorized  to  construct  a  railroad  and  telegraph 
line  from  the  Pacific  Coast,  at  or  near  San  Francisco,  or  the 
navigable  waters  of  the  Sacramento  River,"  etc. 


CHAPTER   xx 

In  the  preparation  of  this  chapter  many  authorities  have 
been  consulted  for  data  concernng  the  journeyings  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln:  viele;  nicolay  and  hay;  mcclellan;  haupt; 
nicolay's    "short    life";    mcclure;    tarbell;    Howard    in 


294  NOTES 

ward;  welles;  brooks'  "Washington";  brooks'  "reminis- 
cences"; bates;  complete  works;  porter's  "campaigning"; 
livermore. 

The  incident  at  Annapolis,  pages  234-235,  is  quoted  from 
bates,  340-312. 

In  account  of  the  "vacation  trip"  we  have  quoted  freely 
from  welles;  porter's  "lincoln";  porter's  "campaigning"; 
barnes;  Sherman's  "memoirs";  Coffin  in  rice;  and  de  cham- 
brun.  The  latter,  although  an  entertaining  writer,  cannot  be 
accused  of  undue  accuracy. 

For  the  railroad  data  we  are  indebted  to  President  Eppa 
Hunton,  Jr.,  of  the  Richmond,  Fredricksburg  and  Potomac 
Railroad  Company;  Vice  President  J.  J.  Doyle  of  the  Wash- 
ington, Baltimore,  and  Annapolis  Electric  Railroad  Com- 
pany; President  N.  D.  Maher,  of  the  Norfolk  and  Western 
Railway  Company;  Assistant  Secretary  Guy  E.  Mauldin,  of 
the  Southern  Railway  Company;  and  President  William  A. 
Winburn,  of  the  Central  of  Georgia  Railway  Company. 

CHAPTER    XXI 

Chapter  recast  in  proper  sequence  from  accounts  in  nico- 
lay;  MacvEAGH;  Cochrane;  carmichael;  Fry  and  Andrews 
in  rice;  jacobs;  burrage;  Scully  in  Atlanta;  Stahel  in 
markens;  and  Hay  in  thayer.  See  also  wilson;  and  the 
admirable  treatises  of  lambert,  and  barton's  "life"  ii,  185— 
226,  and  485-493. 

CHAPTER    XXII 

Itinerary,  dates,  etc.,  compiled  in  the  main  from  contem- 
porary accounts  of  coggeshall,  136-288;  morris,  155-219; 
and  shea,  163-225;  also  power,  120-206,  and  map  facing 
page  112. 

Railroad    data    gathered    from    memoranda    furnished    by 


NOTES  295 

President  Bierd  of  the  Chicago  and  Alton  Railroad  Company, 
and  President  H.  R.  Currie,  of  the  Chicago,  Indianapolis  and 
Louisville  Railway,  in  addition  to  the  following  officials  to 
whom  we  are  indebted  for  material  used  in  the  preparation 
of  chapter  xviii :  Secretary  Woolford  of  the  Baltimore  and 
Ohio;  Publicity  Manager  Rogers  of  the  "Big  Four";  General 
Superintendent  Smith  of  the  New  York  Central;  and  Chief 
Engineer  Shand  of  the  Pennsylvania.  Mention  should  also  be 
made  of  Dr.  Carman. 

Mr.  William  E.  Stevenson,  of  Philadelphia,  is  our  authority 
for  the  reminiscences,  page  268-269,  of  his  uncle,  John  E. 
Miller,  who  as  engineer  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  hauled 
the  Lincoln  funeral  special  on  its  memorable  run  from 
Harrisburg  to  Philadelphia. 

Page  271 :  quotation  from  Chauncey  M.  Depew  found  in 

MaCCHESNEY,    310. 

Page  273:  quotation  from  Chicago  and  Alton  management 
taken  from  Chicago  and  alton. 

Page  274:  excerpt  from  Miss  Tarbell's  account  as  given  in 

TARBELL   II,    258. 

Page  275:  for  Gobright's  reminiscences,  see  gobright,  361- 
362. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

WITH    ABBREVIATIONS    USED    IN    NOTES 

In  addition  to  the  authorities  listed  here,  many  maps  deal- 
ing with  the  early  and  present-day  American  railroads,  as 
well  as  files  of  contemporary  newspapers  and  Congressional 
Records,  have  been  consulted. 

acts  of  congress:  Acts  and  Joint  Resolutions  of  Congress 
and  Decisions  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
Relating  to  the  Union  Pacific,  Central  Pacific,  and  West- 
ern Pacific  Railroads.  Washington:  Government  Printing 
Office.   1897. 

anberson:  The  Part  Played  by  the  Illinois  Central  and  Its 
Employees  in  the  Civil  War.  First  article:  "Abraham 
Lincoln"  (by  Col.  H.  L.  Anderson).  In  Illinois  Central 
Magazine,  February  to  May,  1913. 

Arnold's  "life":  The  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  By  Isaac 
N.  Arnold,  etc.  Chicago:  A.  C.  McClurg  &  Co.  1901. 

Arnold's  "slavery":  The  History  of  Abraham  Lincoln  and 
the  Overthrow  of  Slavery.  By  Isaac  N.  Arnold,  etc. 
Chicago:  Clarke  &  Co.  1866. 

Atlanta:  Services  in  Commemoration  of  the  One  Hundredth 
Anniversary  of  the  Birth  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  Arranged 
by  Union  and  Confederate  Veterans,  Atlanta,  Georgia, 
Sunday  Evening,  February  14th,  1909.  Published  by 
"Blue"  and  "Gray"  Veterans.  1909. 

banyon:  Letter  of  Walter  Banyon  as  given  in  Notes  and 
Comments,  in  Michigan  History  Magazine,  January- 
April  1921. 

299 


300  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

barnes:  With  Lincoln  from  Washington  to  Richmond  in  1865. 
By  John  S.  Barnes,  Late  U.S.N.  In  Appleton's  Maga- 
zine, May  and  June,  1907. 

barrett:  Abraham  Lincoln  and  His  Presidency.  By  Joseph 
H.  Barrett,  LL.D.  Two  volumes.  Cincinnati:  The  Robert 
Clarke  Co.  1904. 

barton's  "influence":  The  Influence  of  Chicago  Upon 
Abraham  Lincoln.  An  address  delivered  before  the  Chi- 
cago Historical  Society  on  February  10,  1922.  By  Wil- 
liam E.  Barton,  etc.  Chicago:  The  University  of  Chicago 
Press.  1923. 

barton's  "life":  The  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  By  William 
E.  Barton,  etc.  Two  volumes.  Indianapolis:  The  Bobbs- 
Merrill  Co.  1925. 

bateman:  Abraham  Lincoln.  An  Address  by  Hon.  Newton 
Bateman,  LL.D.  Galesburg,  111.:  Published  by  the  Cad- 
mus Club.  1899. 

bates:  Lincoln  in  the  Telegraph  Office.  By  David  Homer 
Bates,  etc.  New  York:  The  Century  Co.  1907. 

blaine :  Twenty  Years  of  Congress;  From  Lincoln  to  Gar- 
field, etc.  By  James  G.  Blaine.  Two  volumes.  Norwich, 
Conn.:  The  Henry  Hill  Publishing  Co.  1884. 

brooks'  "reminiscences":  Personal  Reminiscences  of  Lin- 
coln. By  Noah  Brooks.  (First  paper).  In  Scribner's 
Monthly,  February,  1878. 

brooks'  "Washington":  Washington  in  Lincoln's  Time.  By 
Noah  Brooks,  etc.  New  York:  The  Century  Co.  1896. 

brown:  Autobiographical  Notes.  By  E.  Lakin  Brown.  Edited 
by  his  Daughter,  A.  Ada  Brown.  In  Historical  Collec- 
tions: Collections  and  Researches  made  by  the  Michigan 
Pioneer  and  Historical  Society.  Vol.  XXX.  Lansing, 
Mich.:  Wynkoop  Hallenbeck  Crawford  Company,  State 
Printers.   1906. 

Browne's  "lincoln":  Abraham  Lincoln  and  the  Men  of  His 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  301 

Time.  By  Robert  H.  Browne,  M'.D.  Two  volumes.  Cin- 
cinnati: Jennings  and  Pye;  New  York:  Eaton  and  Mains. 
1901. 

burrage:  Gettysburg  and  Lincoln:  The  Battle,  the  Cemetery, 
and  the  National  Park.  By  Henry  Sweetser  Burrage, 
Brevet  Major,  U.S.  Vols.  New  York  and  London:  G.  P. 
Putnam's  Sons.  1906. 

campbell:  (Lincoln  in  Michigan).  Contributed  by  Mrs.  Caro- 
line P.  Campbell  in  Notes  and  Comments.  In  Michigan 
History  Magazine,  July— October,  1921. 

cannon's  "home  state":  Lincoln  in  His  Home  State.  By 
Joseph  G.  Cannon.  In  Leslie's  Weekly,  February  4, 
1909. 

cannon's  "lincoln":  Abraham  Lincoln,  etc.  Speech  of  Hon. 
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INDEX 


Note. — Sub-topics    in    this    index    are    arranged    chronologically 
wherever  possible. 


Albany  and  Vermont  R.  R., 
now  part  of  Delaware  and 
Hudson,  187 

Allen,  Horatio,  sent  to  investi- 
gate English  railroads,  3 

Alton  and  Sangamon  R.  R.,  in- 
corporation,  80 
succeeded     by     Chicago     and 
Mississippi,  82 

Anderson,  Colonel,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  connection 
with  Illinois  Central,  58 

Aquia  Creek  R.  R.,  location, 
230 

Arnold,  Isaac  N.,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  preparation 
of  Gettysburg  Address,  249 


Bacon,  Henry  D.,  case  vs.  Ohio 
and  Mississippi  R.  R.,  85 
Lincoln's  letter  about  case,  90 
Baker,    Edward    L.,    description 
of  Lincoln's  leave-taking  at 
Springfield    station,   176 
Baldwin  locomotives,  "Old  Iron- 
sides," 2 
second  in  Illinois,  34 
Baltimore,   cause   of   President's 
secret  journey,   190 
contrast      when      he      passed 
through   on  way  to  Gettys- 
burg, 255 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  R.  R.,  early 
route,  48 
one  of  early  roads,  85,  91 
opinion  of  officials  about  case 


of  Bacon  vs.  Ohio  and  Mis- 
sissippi, 89 
funeral  train,  266 

Barnes,  Captain,  description  of 
Lincoln's  visit  to  the  front, 
237 

Bedell,  grace,  kindliness  from 
Lincoln,  184 

Bible,  Lincoln's  knowledge  of  in- 
ventions   mentioned,    103 

"Big  Four."  See  Cleveland,  Cin- 
cinnati, Chicago  and  St. 
Louis    Ry. 

Blaine,  James  G.,  comment  on 
Union    Pacific    Act,    207 

Blodgett,  Judge,  impression  of 
Lincoln's  conduct  of  Rock 
Island    case,    105 

Boston  and  Albany  R.  R.,  early 
lines,   51,   52 

Boston  and  Maine  R.  R.,  early 
lines,  51 

Breese,  Sidney,  "Father  of  Il- 
linois Central,"  40,  41 

Brooks  Noah,  statement  of  Lin- 
coln's preparation  of  Gettys- 
burg Address,  248 

Brough  John,  member  of  com- 
mittee on  transportation  of 
funeral    train,    266 

Browne,  Robert  H.,  impression  of 
Lincoln,  145 

Browning,  Orville  H.,  member  of 
Legislature  with  Lincoln, 
25 

Bryant,  Gridley,  operator  of 
horse-power  tramway,  3 


313 


su 


INDEX 


Bucklin,    James    M.,    advocated 

railroad      for      Illinois,      19 
chief     engineer     of     Northern 

Cross  R.  R.,  32 
Buffalo   and   State  Line   R.   R., 

now     part     of     New     York 

Central,  184 
Burnside,    General,    consultation 

with  Lincoln,  228 

Cannon,     Joseph     B.,     anecdote 
about  Lincoln,  158 
second   meeting   with   Lincoln, 
168 

Cape  May  visited  by  Lincoln, 
54 

Capen,  Charles  L.,  investigator  of 
truth  about  Lincoln's  suit 
against  Illinois  Central  R. 
R.,  76,  79 

Central  Pacific  R.  R.,  authorized 
to  construct  from  coast  to 
meet  Union  Pacific,  199 

Central  R.  R.  and  Banking! 
Co.  of  Georgia,  now  part 
of  Central  of  Georgia,  de- 
stroyed by  Sherman,  241, 
242 

"Chalked  hat,"  meaning  of  term, 
82 

Chapman,  A.  H.,  entertained  Lin- 
coln and  accompanied  him  to 
stepmother's  home,  170 

Chase,  Secretary,  with  Lincoln  on 
trip  to  Fort  Monroe,  226 
note  from  Lincoln  about  trip  to 
Gettysburg,    251 

Chicago,  special  demonstration 
while  Lincoln's  body  lay  in 
state,    273 

Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy 
R.  R.,  Lincoln  opposing 
counsel,    122 

Chicago  and   Alton  R.  R.,  used 
first  Pullman  cars,  154 
funeral  train,  273 


Chicago  and  Milwaukee,  now 
part  of  Chicago  and  North- 
western, 158 

Chicago   and   Mississippi   R.   R., 
successor  to  Alton  and  San- 
gamon, 82 
succeeded  by  St.  Louis,  Alton 
and   Chicago,  83 

Chicago     Convention     at     which 
Lincoln  was  nominated,  162 
favored  Union  Pacific,  197 

Chicago,  Rock  Island  and  Pa- 
cific R.  R.,  includes  former 
Rock  Island  Company,  92 

Circuit   riding,    150,    151 

City  Point  Branch  of  Norfolk 
and  Western  Ry.,  extent, 
244 

Civil  War,   Illinois  Central  con- 
troversy,   70 
Lincoln's    visits    to    the    front, 

226  et  seq. 
famous  conference  in  cabin  of 

River  Queen,  240 
railroads    destroyed    by    Sher- 
man, 241 
United  States  Military  R.  R., 
276 

Cleveland  and  Pittsburg  R.  R., 
now  part  of  Pennsylvania 
system,   182,  184 

Cleveland,     Cincinnati,     Chicago 
and  St.  Louis  Ry.,  known  as 
Big  Four,  165 
now  part  of  New  York  Cen- 
tral system,  181 

Cleveland,    Columbus    and    Cin- 
cinnati R.  R.,  funeral  train, 
272 
now  part  of  Big  Four,  272 

Cleveland,  Painesville  and  Ash- 
tabula R.  R.,  now  part  of 
New  York  Central,   184 

Cochrane,  Lieutenant,  contact 
with  Lincoln  on  way  to  Get- 
tysburg, 254 


INDEX 


315 


statement  about  Lincoln's  prep- 
aration of  Gettysburg  Ad- 
dress, 258 

Coffin,  Charles  C,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  preparation 
of  Gettysburg  Address,  250 

Cole,     Cornelius,     comment     on 
Union  Pacific  Act,  209 
statement  about  Lincoln's  part 
in     fixing    track     gauge    of 
Union  Pacific,  219 
statement  about  Lincoln's  prep- 
aration   of    Gettysburg   Ad- 
dress, 260 
statement  about  military  trains 
claiming  right  of  way,  261 

Columbus  and  Indianapolis  Cen- 
tral  Ry.,   funeral  train,  272 
now  part  of  Pennsylvania  sys- 
tem, 272 

Columbus  and  Xenia  R.  R.,  now 
part  of  Pennsylvania  system, 
182 

Connolly,  James  A.,  description 
of  Lincoln,  169 

Cooper,  Peter,  builder  of  "Tom 
Thumb"   locomotive,    2 

Cooper  Union  speech,  Lincoln's, 
126,  127,  160,  161 

Corning,  Erastus,  president  of 
New  York  Central  said  to 
have  offered  Lincoln  position 
as  General  Counsel,  12.6,  127, 
128 
reference  to  letter  received 
from    Lincoln,    131 

Curtin,  Governor,  part  in  Gettys- 
burg dedication,  247 

Curtis,  Samuel  R.,  chairman 
board  of  commissioners 
Union  Pacific,  199 

Curtis,  William  E.,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  largest  fee, 
75 

Danville  R.  R.  See  Richmond 


Dalby  case,  Lincoln's  connection, 

83,  84,  123 
Davis,   C.   H.,   representative  of 
Secretary  of  Navy  in  funeral 
train,  267 
Davis,    David,    statement    about 
Lincoln's    largest    fee,    79 
with  funeral  train,  267 
Delaware   and   Hudson  Co.,  im- 
portation of  locomotives  from 
England,  3 
Depew,  Chauncey  M.,  description 
of      passing      of      Lincoln's 
funeral   train    through    New 
York  state,  271 
Dey,  Peter  A.,  comment  on  Lin- 
coln's  conduct   of   Rock   Is- 
land case,  99,  104 
selected   to   survey   for   Union 
Pacific,   199 
Dodge,  Grenville  M.,  made  sur- 
vey    for     proposed     Pacific 
R.  R.,  196,  200  et  seq. 
interview   with    Lincoln    about 

Pacific  railroad,  196,  200 
visit  to  Union  Pacific  officials 

in  New  York,  202 
recommended  for  Government 
Commissioner,    but    not    ap- 
pointed, 210 
Douglas,  John  M.,  solicitor  who 
paid    Lincoln's    largest    fee, 
76,  77 
Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  member  of 
Legislature  with  Lincoln,  24 
his  land  grant  bill  ratified  and 

signed,  41 
campaign  for  presidency  163 
contrasted    with   Lincoln,    132, 
143,  145 
Douglas-Lincoln      debates.      See 

Lincoln-Douglas  debates 
Drennan,  J.  G.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's     connection     with 
charter    of   Illinois    Central, 
42 


316 


INDEX 


statement  about  Lincoln's  at- 
torneyship for  Illinois  Cen- 
tral,  57,   58,   63 

statement  about  Lincoln's  larg- 
est fee,  76 

Eckert,    T.    T.,    anecdote    about 

Lincoln,  234- 
Erie  and  North  East  R.  R.,  now 

part  of   New  York  Central, 

184 
Evans,  Oliver,  inventor  of  steam 

carriage,  2 
Everett,  Edward,  speaker  of  day 

at  Gettysburg,  247,  262 
comment  on  Lincoln's  address, 

263 

Federal     Land     Grant,     Illinois, 
problems,  41 
advocated    by    Lincoln,   53 
Fee,  Lincoln's  largest,  73 
Lincoln's  in  Rock  Island  case, 
113 
Fremont,  John  C,  recommended 
to   push    project    of   Pacific 
railroad,  194,  195 
French,    Augustus    C,    member 
of  Legislature  with  Lincoln, 
25 
Fry,  James  B.,  special  escort  for 
Lincoln   on  Gettysburg  trip, 
253 
Funeral  car,  mistaken  ideas,  275 
correction    of    mistakes,    276 
description,  277 
Funeral  train,  265 

details  of  trip  from  Washing- 
ton to  Illinois,  266  et  seq. 
general     demonstration     along 

route,  274,  275 
final  scene  at  Springfield,  278 


Garrett,    John    W.,    member    of 


committee  to  regulate  trans- 
portation of  funeral  train, 
266 

Gettysburg  Battle,  news  of  vic- 
tory carried  to  Lincoln,  246 

Gettysburg    Address,   claims    re- 
garding its  preparation,  248 
et  seq.  258  et  seq. 
delivery,  262,  263 

Goodrich,  Grant,  engaged  with 
Lincoln  against  a  railroad, 
121 

Goodwin,  F.  M.,  assistance  in 
making  Lincoln  papers  avail- 
able,  199 

Gorman,  J.  E.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's  fee  in  Rock  Island 
case,  113 

Graham,  James  M.,  statement 
that  certain  papers  are  in 
Lincoln's  handwriting,  88, 
89 

Grant,  Ulysses  S.,  visited  by  Lin- 
coln at  the  front,  232,  233, 
236 
removal  of  headquarters  and 
later  visit  by  Lincoln,  242, 
243,  244 
placed  in  command  of  Union 
forces,  247 

Great  Western  R.  R.,  declaration 
written    by   Lincoln   in    suit 
against  the  road,   118 
successor    to    Sangamon    and 
Morgan,  38 

Great  Western  Ry.,  incorpora- 
tion  and    failure,   41 

Greeley,  Horace,  with  Lincoln 
during  part  of  journey  to 
Washington,  184 


Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  R.  R., 
an  early  line  of  Chicago, 
Burlington   and  Quincy,  153 

Harlan,      James,      advocate     of 


INDEX 


317 


Union    Pacific    R.    R.,    198 
moved  to  debate  track  gauge 

bill,  222 
defense  of  track  gauge  bill,  223, 
224 

Hay,  John,  statement  about  Lin- 
coln's talk  with  MacVeagh. 
See  Also  Nicolay  and  Hay, 
262 

Herndon,  William  H.,  Lincoln's 
law  partner,  comment  on 
Legislature  of  which  Lincoln 
was  member,  27 
account  of  suit  for  which  Lin- 
coln received  largest  fee,  73 
et  seq. 
received  half  Lincoln's  largest 

fee,  74,  75,  79 
signature     on     declaration    in 
Lincoln's  handwriting,  88 

Herriott,  F.  I.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's  visit  to  Iowa  in 
private  car,  67 

Hill,  Frederick  Trevor,  comment 

on  Lincoln's  conduct  of  Rock 

Island  case,  104 

statement    that    Douglas    paid 

for    railroad   privileges,    137 

Hitt,  Robert  R.,  report  of  Lin- 
coln's argument  in  Rock 
Island  case,  104,  107 

Holbrook  Company,  popular 
name  for  Great  Western  Ry., 
41 

Holland,  J.  G.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's  preparation  of 
Gettysburg  Address,  249 

Hooker,  General,  visited  by  Lin- 
coln, 229 

Horse-power  railways,  3 

Howard,  O.  O.,  anecdote  of  Lin- 
coln, 228 

Hudson    River    R.    R.,    funeral 
train,  269 
now  part  of  New  York  Central, 
186 


Hunter,     David,     with     funeral 

train,  267 
Hurd,  Harvey  B.,  impression  of 

Lincoln,  158 


Illinois,  agitation  to  remove  capi- 
tal, 20 
Lincoln's  part  in  agitation,  23 
building    of    Northern    Cross 

R.  R.,  32 
Federal  Land  Grant  problems, 

41 
first  railroad,  32 
internal  improvements,  25,  30, 
40 
Illinois  and  Michigan  canal,  pro- 
posed,   18 
appropriation  for  building,  26 
Illinois    Central    R.    R.,    history, 
40 
initial  appropriation,  25 
Sidney    Breese    instigator,    40, 

41 
route  proposed,  25 
Lincoln's  part  in  establishing, 
40,  42 
Lincoln's     attorneyship,     57     et 
seq. 
McLean   County   litigation,   59 
Lincoln's  last  case,  68 
Lincoln's    largest    fee,    73,    76 
service    during    Civil    War,    70 
Illinois  River  R.  R.,  Lincoln  op- 
posing counsel,  122 
Illinois    State    Legislature,    Lin- 
coln elected,  16 
members  with  Lincoln,  24 
bill    authorizing    internal    im- 
provements, 25 
Lincoln's    support   of   railroad 

legislation,  14,  18  et  seq. 
problem  of  utilizing  land  grant, 

41 
Lincoln  as  lobbyist,  42 
Illinois  Supreme  Court,  Lincoln's 


318 


INDEX 


suits     for    Illinois     Central, 

62,  64,  68  et  seq. 
Lincoln's   suits   for  other  rail- 
roads,  81 
Lincoln    opposing    counsel    to 

railroads,  117,  121-124 
Inauguration,    reason    for    delay 

after    election   of   president, 

172 
Indianapolis    and    Cincinnati    R. 

R.,  length  in  1861,  181 
Internal   improvement    follies   of 

Illinois  State  Legislature,  18 

et  seq. 
Irick,    John    S.,    at    Cape    May 

with  Lincoln,  55 

Jenkins,  A.  M.,  projection  of 
Illinois  Central  R.  R.,  40 

Joy,  James  F.,  said  to  have  re- 
fused to  pay  Lincoln's  larg- 
est fee,  76 
opposing    counsel    to    Lincoln 
in  railroad  case,  121 

Judd,  Mrs.  Norman  B.,  account 
of  Lincoln's  visit  at  her 
home,  100 

Koerner,  Gustave,  engaged  with 
Lincoln  against  a  railroad, 
121 

King,  Sidney  D.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's   funeral  car,  276 

Lafayette  and  Indianapolis  R.  R., 
funeral  train,  273 
now  part  of  New  York  Central, 
181,  273 
Lamon,   Ward    H.    comment  on 
railroad's  treatment  of  Lin- 
coln and  Douglas,  135 
reference   to   Lincoln's   largest 

fee,  75 
companion   in  Lincoln's   secret 
journey  from  Harrisburg  to 
Washington,  191 


statement  about  Lincoln's  fair- 
ness and  honesty,  121 
statement       about       Lincoln's 
preparation    of    Gettysburg 
Address,  248 
with  funeral  train,  267 
Land  grant.  See  Federal 
Latham,  Milton  S.,  opposition  to 
Union    Pacific    track    gauge 
bill,  223,  224 
Leonard,  L.  O.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's    interest    in    Union 
Pacific,  199 
Lexington   and   Ohio   R.   R.,  in- 
corporated in   Kentucky,  47 
Lincoln,  birthplace,  1 
move  to  Illinois,  7 
first     impressions     of     steam 

power,  5 
first  direct  contact  with  steam, 

8 
ferryman  on  the  Ohio,  8 
move  to  Macon  County,  111.,  9 
first  trip  on  steamboat,  9 
trips   to   New   Orleans,  8,   10 
impression  of  slave  market,  11 
clerking  at  New  Salem,  11,  12 
advocate    of    clearing    water- 
ways, 12,  14 
address  on  transportation,  13 
elected  to  Legislature,  16 
admitted  to  bar,  16 
part  in  legislation  for  Illinois 
internal  improvements,  14,  18 
et  seq.,  27,  28,  30 
connection  with  Northern  Cross 

R.  R.,  38,  39 
part     in     establishing     Illinois 

Central  R.  R.,  40,  42 
at  Whig  convention,  48 
lobbyist  for  railroad  interests, 

42-45 
journeys    to    the    East,   46    et 

seq.,   160 
political     career     grew     with 
spread  of  railroads,  1,  46 


INDEX 


319 


trips  as  Member  of  Congress, 
47,  53 

advocate  of  land  grants,  53 

last  speech  in  Congress,  53 

refused  appointment  as  Fed- 
eral Commissioner  of  Land 
Office,  54 

Cape  May  visit,  54 

attorney  for  Illinois  Central, 
57  et  seq. 

largest  fee,  63,  73,  74,  75,  79 

opinion  on  charter  of  Illinois 
Central,  64 

legal  standing  in  late  fifties, 
67 

attorney  for  Chicago  and 
Alton  R.  R.  and  Rock  Is- 
land, 80 

attorney  for  Alton,  and  Sang- 
amon R.  R.,  81 

attorney  for  Chicago  and  Mis- 
sissippi R.  R.,  82 

investment  in  stock,  84 

attorney  for  Ohio  and  Mis- 
sissippi R.  R.,  80,  85,  88, 
90 

leading  counsel  in  Rock  Island 
Bridge  case.  See  Rock  Is- 
land Bridge  Case 

counsel  in  suits  against  rail- 
roads, 117,  118 

New  York  Central  offer,  126 
et  seq. 

contrasted  with  Douglas,  132, 
143,  145 

riding  the   circuit,  150 

journeys  during  the  fifties,  150 
et  seq. 

address  at  Kalamazoo,  151 

trips    to   Chicago,   153 

free  passes  on  railroads,  67, 
82,  155 

journey   to  East   in   1860,   160 

Cooper  Union  address,  126, 
127,  160,  161 

campaign  for  presidency,  163 


visit    to    his    stepmother,    164 

journey  to  Washington,  172 
et  seq. 

official  notification  of  election 
to  presidency,  182 

entertainment  in  New  York, 
188 

secret  journey  from  Harris- 
burg  to  Washington,  190, 
191 

visits  to  Army,  226-230,  242- 
244 

visit  to  Weitzel  at  Richmond, 
244,  245 

reception  of  news  of  Gettys- 
burg victory,  246 

journey  to  Gettysburg,  253  et 
seq. 

assassination,  265 

funeral  services,  266 

burial  at  Springfield,  278 

various  impressions  and  anec- 
dotes of  Lincoln :  Linder,  22 ; 
Wilson,  22,  23;  Henderson, 
23,  24;  Herriott,  67;  Mrs. 
Judd,  100;  Schurz,  137; 
White,  139;  Villard,  141; 
brakeman ;  143 ;  conductor, 
144,  Browne,  145;  anony- 
mous, 155,  156;  Hurd,  158; 
Cannon,  158,  168;  Whitney, 
165;  Connolly,  169,  170; 
brakeman,  179 ;  anonymous, 
183;  Dodge,  196;  Eckert, 
234;  French  marquis,  243 
Lincoln,  Mrs.  Abraham,  with 
presidential  party  on  way  to 
Washington,  178 

request  that  body  of  Willie 
accompany  funeral  train,  265 

with  funeral  train,  267 
Lincoln,   Robert  with  his  father 
on  presidential  trip  to  Wash- 
ington, 173,  177 
Lincoln,    Sarah   Bush,   last  visit 
from  Lincoln,  170 


320 


INDEX 


Lincoln-Douglas    debates,    cause 
and  subject,  133,  134 
result,  150 
treatment   of   protagonists   by 

Illinois  Central,  135 
Douglas  said  to  have  paid  for 
railroad  privileges,  137 
Linder,  Usher  F.,  impression  of 
Lincoln,  22 
statement     about     Illinois     in- 
ternal improvements,  21 
Little  Miami  R.  R.,  now  part  of 

Pennsylvania  system,  182 
Locomotives,    earliest   in    service 
in  America,  3 
Baldwin,  2,  34 

early    types,   2,   3,   33,   34,   36 
early  types  short-lived,  38 
first  in  Mississippi  Valley,  33 
Logan,  Stephen  T.,  Lincoln's  com- 
ment on,  123 
Long  Nine  in  Illinois  Legislature, 

19,  22 
Louisville   and   Nashville   R.   R„ 
successor  to   Lexington    and 
Ohio,  47 
Louisville,  New  Albany  and  Chi- 
cago   R.    R.,    funeral    train, 
273 
now  part  of  Chicago,  Indian- 
apolis   and    Louisville    Ry., 
273 

Macon  and  Western  R.  R.,  now 
part  of  Central  of  Georgia, 
destroyed    by    Sherman,    241 

MacVeagh,    Wayne,     with     Lin- 
coln's party   for  Gettysburg 
dedication,  252 
conversation    with   Lincoln   on 

train,   262,  264 
comment    on    Gettysburg    Ad- 
dress, 264 

Matteson,  Joel  A.,  letter  from 
Lincoln  about  latter's  connec- 


tion   with    St.   Louis,    Alton 
and  Chicago  R.  R.,  83 

McCallum,  D.  C,  oversight  of 
transportation  facilities  for 
funeral  train,  267 

McClellan,   George   B.,   comment 
on  Lincoln  and  his  anecdotes, 
66 
said   to   have   refused   to   pay 

Lincoln's   largest  fee,   74 
said  not  to  be  official  who  re- 
fused to  pay  fee,  75 
said  to  have  influenced  Illinois 
Central's   treatment   of   Lin- 
coln   and    Douglas,    135,    136 
visit  during  the  war  by  Lincoln, 
227 

McClernand,  John  A.,  member 
of  Legislature  with  Lincoln, 
24 

McConnel,  Murray,  connection 
with  Northern  Cross  R.  R., 
32 

McDougall,  James  A.,  opposition 
to  Union  Pacific  track  gauge 
bill,  223 

McLean,  John,  presiding  judge 
in  Rock  Island  case,  99 

Meade,  General,  Gettysburg  vic- 
tory, 246-247 
visited  by  Lincoln  at  the  front, 
237 

Merwin,    James    B.,    introduced 
Corning  to  Lincoln,  127 
accompanied   Lincoln  on  trip, 

128 
description  of  Lincoln  when  he 
refused    New   York   Central 
offer,   129,   130 
his   story   of   New  York  Cen- 
tral offer  upheld,  131 

Michigan  Central  R.  R.,  funeral 
train,  273 

Missouri  Compromise  Act  and 
Lincoln-Douglas  debates,  133 


INDEX 


321 


Mississippi  River,  navigation  on, 
8,  9,  92  et  seq. 
Rock  Island  Bridge,  92  et  seq. 

New    England,    Lincoln's    visits, 

50  et  seq.,  161 
New  Orleans,  Lincoln's  visits,  8, 

10 
New  York  Central  R.  R.,  early 
lines,  52 
offer  to  Lincoln,  126,  130,  131 
funeral  train,  271 
Nicolay    and    Hay,   comment   on 
acts    of    Illinois    Legislature 
of  which  Lincoln  was  a  mem- 
ber, 26,  28 
Northern    Central    Ry.,    funeral 

train,  268 
Northern    Cross    R.   R.,   first   in 
Illinois,    32 
Bucklin  chief  engineer,  32 
construction   of   roadbed,   34 
succeeded    by    Sangamon    and 
Morgan,      then      by      Great 
Western,  37 

Ohio     and     Mississippi     R.     R., 
Lincoln  as  attorney,  85 
Lincoln's  letter  about  case  vs. 

Bacon,   90 
Lincoln  opposing  counsel,  121 
now  part  of  B.  &  O.  system, 
91 
Ohio    and    Pennsylvania    R.    R., 
now    part    of    Pennsylvania 
system,  182,  183 
"Old  Ironsides,"  Baldwin  engine, 
2 

Pacific  R.  R.  See  Union  Pacific 
Passenger   coaches,    early   types, 

35 
Passes,    on    railroads,    Lincoln's, 

67,  82,  155 
Patton,    William    L.,    statement 


about     Lincoln's    connection 
with    Alton    and    Sangamon, 
R.  R.,  80 
Pennsylvania  R.  R.,  lines  in  1848, 
50 
1861,  189 

funeral  train  1861,  268 
Pinkerton,     Allan,     accompanied 
Lincoln    on    secret    journey, 
191 
Pomeroy,   Samuel  C,  opposition 
to  Union  Pacific  track  gauge 
bill,  223 
Presidential    journey    to    Wash- 
ington, train  and  route,  174, 
177  et  seq. 
party  on  train,  177 
Villard's  description,  192 
expenses,  192 
Pullman  cars,  first  used  on  Chi- 
cago and  Alton  R.  R.,  154 
Lincoln's  couch,  154 

Railroads,  development  in  United 
States,  1 

early  opposition,  3,  4,  5 

first  in  England,  2 

authorized  in  1837  in  Illinois, 
25 

begun  in  Illinois,  31 

building  of  Northern  Cross, 
32 

first  in  Illinois,  32 

inconveniences  of  early  lines, 
35-37,  38 

beginnings  of  comfort,  154 

lines  used  by  Lincoln  in  jour- 
neys to  East,  47-56 

number  and  extent  in  1848,  46- 
53 

condition  in  1860,  162 

passenger  coaches,  first  in  Ill- 
inois, 35 

roadbed  of  first  in  Illinois,  34 

destroyed  by  Sherman,  241 


322 


INDEX 


roads  that  furnished  presiden- 
tial train  in  1861,   174,  177, 
182,   187,   189,  191,   193 
roads    that    provided    funeral 

train,  266,  268-273 
United  States  Military  R.  R., 

276 
See  also  names  of  railroads 
"Rail-splitter,"     origin    of    Lin- 
coln's nickname,  162 
Rankin,  Henry  B.,  statement  re- 
garding expenses  of  Lincoln's 
trip  to  Washington,  193 
Rantoul,  Robert,  Jr.,  suggestion 
to  Illinois  Legislature  about 
land  grant,  42 
suggestion  accepted,  45 
statement  of  his  son  about  con- 
nection with  Lincoln,  44 
Rensselaer  and  Saratoga  R.   R., 
now  part   of   Delaware   and 
Hudson,  187 
Republican      Party,      organized, 
134,  153 
State  and  National  Conventions 

in  1860,  162 
advocated  Union  Pacific  R.  R., 
197,  206 
Richards,  John  T.,  comment  on 
Lincoln's    conduct    of    Rock 
Island  case,  103 
statement  of  situation  in  Rock 
Island  Bridge  case,  98 
Richardson,  William  A.,  member 
of  Legislature  with  Lincoln, 
25 
Richmond    and    Danville    R.    R., 
extent,  241 
now    part     of     Southern    Ry. 
system,  241 
Roadbed,  early  type,  34 
Rock  Island  Bridge,  construction, 
92 
opposition  to,  92 
Rock  Island  Bridge  case,  93-115 
Rock  Island  R.  R.,  now  part  of 


Chicago,  Rock  Island  and  Pa- 
cific R.  R.,  92 

Rogers  engine,  first  in  Illinois, 
33,  34 

Ross,  Thomas,  brakeman,  recol- 
lections of  Lincoln's  journey 
across  Illinois  after  election 
to  presidency,  179 

St.  Louis,  Alton  and  Chicago  R. 
R.,  Lincoln  opposing  counsel 
in  Dalby  suit,  123 
successor  to  Chicago  and  Mis- 
sissippi, 83 

Sangamon    and    Morgan    R.    R., 
Lincoln  opposing  counsel  in 
suit,  118 
operated    for    months    without 

locomotive,  38 
successor  to  Northern  Cross,  37 

Sanitary  Fair,  Lincoln's  experi- 
ence, 231 

Sargent,  Aaron  A.,  alleged  con- 
nection with  Union  Pacific, 
215 

Schurz,  Carl,  impression  of  Lin- 
coln, 137 

Scott,   Winfield,  visited   by  Lin- 
coln at  West  Point,  227 
viewed  Lincoln's  body  at  New 
York,  269 

Scully,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  state- 
ment about  Lincoln's  prepa- 
ration of  Gettysburg  Ad- 
dress, 258,  259,  260 

Semple,  James,  member  of  Legis- 
lature with  Lincoln,  25 

Seward,  William  H.,  on  program 
with  Lincoln  at  Whig  rally, 
51 

Sherman,  John,  comment  on 
Union  Pacific  Act,  209 

Sherman,  General,  destruction  of 
Southern  railroads,  241 

Shields,  James,  member  of  Legis- 
lature with  Lincoln,  24 


INDEX 


323 


Slavery,      Lincoln-Douglas      de- 
bates, 133  et  seq. 

impression  of  New  Orleans 
market  on  Lincoln,  11 

Lincoln's  statements  in  1854, 
134 

Lincoln's  story  of  its  effect  on 
white  men,  157 
Smith,  B.  F.,  brakeman,  impres- 
sions of  Lincoln  and  Doug- 
las, 143 
South   Side  R.   R.,  now  merged 
with  Norfolk  and  Western, 
240 
Sprague,     Charles,    Lincoln     his 
counsel  against  railroad,  122 
Stahel,    J.    H.,    statement    about 
Lincoln's      preparation      of 
Gettysburg  Address,  259 
Stanton,  Edwin  M.,  Secretary  of 
War,    alleged   snub   of   Lin- 
coln, 151 

with  Lincoln  on  trip  to  Fort 
Monroe,  226 

despatch  to  Lincoln  at  the 
front  and  remark  at  Wash- 
ington, 238 

protest  against  Lincoln's  visits 
to  battlefields  answered, 
244 

Lincoln's  telegram  about  rail- 
road stock  at  Richmond,  244 

delivery  of  news  of  Gettysburg 
victory  to  Lincoln,  246 

note  to  Lincoln  about  arrange- 
ments for  Gettysburg  trip 
with  Lincoln's  reply,  251 

represented  by  his  son  on  Get- 
tysburg trip,  253 

arrangements  for  funeral  train, 
265,  267 
Steam,  first  experiments,  1 
Steamboats,    beginning    on    Ohio 
and  Mississippi  Rivers,  8 

Philadelphia  to  Cape  May  in 
1849,  55 


Stephenson,  George,  maker  of 
first  locomotives,  2,  3 

Steubenville  and  Indiana  R.  R., 
now  part  of  Pennsylvania 
system,  182 

Stevens,  John,  constructor  of 
locomotive,  2 

Stevens,  Thaddeus,  letter  from 
Lincoln,  49 

Stevens,  Walter  B.,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  part  in  fix- 
ing Union  Pacific  track 
gauge,  220 

Stoddard,  William  O.,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  preparation 
of  Gettysburg  Address,  249 

Supreme  Court.  See  Illinois  and 
United  States 

Terre  Haute   and   Alton  R.  R., 
incorporation    and    opening, 
124 
Lincoln    opposing    counsel    in 

suit,  124 
now  part  of  Big  Four,  165 

Thompson,  Richard  W.,  ap- 
pointed Commissioner  for 
Union  Pacific  R.  R.,  211 

Thornton,  Anthony,  statement 
about  Lincoln's  connection 
with  Illinois  Central  charter, 
43 

Tonica  and  Petersburg  R.  R., 
Lincoln  as  attorney,  84 

Townsend,  E.  D.,  representative 
of  Secretary  of  War  on 
funeral  train,  267 

Track  gauge.  See  Union  Pacific 

Transportation,  Lincoln's  first 
speech  and  handbill,  12,  13 

Troy  Union  R.  R.,  now  part  of 
Delaware  and  Hudson,  187 


Union    Pacific    R.    R.,   Lincoln's 
interest  aroused,  152,  196 


324 


INDEX 


Lincoln's  interview  with  Dodge 
in  regard  to,  196,  200 

advocated     by     Lincoln,     194, 
200,  203 

conditions  controlling  selection 
of  route,  201 

bill    introduced    in    House    of 
Representatives,  195,  197 

endorsed  by  Republican  Party, 
197,  206 

chartered,  198,  199 

Dey  appointed  to  make  partial 
survey,  199 

Dodge     survey     for    proposed 
Pacific  road,  196,  200  et  seq. 

Dodge's  visit  to  officials  in  New 
York,  202 

officers  elected,  199 

authority  given  to  Lincoln,  198 

Lincoln's  order  locating  start- 
ing point,  202,  203,  204 

Lincoln's    message    to    Senate, 
205 

Thompson  appointed  Commis- 
sioner, 211 

directors  appointed  by  Lincoln, 
211,  212 

Lincoln's  order  regarding  stock 
sales,  216 

track-  gauge    controversy,    217 
et  seq. 

track  gauge  bill,  222-225 
United  States  Military  R.  R.,  ex- 
tent and  location,  276 
United    States    Supreme    Court, 
Rock  Island  Bridge  Case,  97, 
99,  105,  113 

Villard,  description  of  Lincoln's 
journey  to  Washington,  192 
impression  of  Lincoln,  141 

Waite,  Morrison  R.,  opinion  re- 
garding case  of  Bacon  vs. 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  R.  R., 
89 


Washington,  Booker  T.,  said  to 
have     started     project     for 
preservation  of  funeral  car, 
276 
Watson,    John    B.,    Lincoln    his 
counsel  in  suit  against  rail- 
road, 118 
Watt,  James,  discoverer  of  mo- 
tive power  of  steam,  2 
Weik,  Jesse  W.,  statement  about 
Lincoln's  connection  with  Il- 
linois Central,  58 
statement  of  Lincoln's  payment 

of  half  fee  to  Herndon,  74 
statement  regarding  Lincoln's 

investment  in  stock,  84 
comment   on   declaration  writ- 
ten by  Lincoln,  118 
description  of  Lincoln  on  morn- 
ing he  left  home  for  Wash- 
ington, 174 
Weitzel,  General,  telegram  about 
railroad  stock  at  Richmond, 
244 
visited    by    Lincoln    at    Rich- 
mond, 245 
Weldon,  Lawrence,  story  of  Lin- 
coln's reply  to  judge's  ques- 
tion about  McClellan,  66 
Welles,  Gideon,  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  note  about  Union  Pa- 
cific track  gauge,  221 
opinion   of  Lincoln's   visits   to 

the  front,  233,  239 
note     about     Lincoln's     health 
after  visit  to  battlefields,  245 
Wharton,  O.  P.,  comment  on  Lin- 
coln's  conduct   of   Rock   Is- 
land case,  104 
Whig  Party,  divided  over  slavery, 
134 
National    Convention    in    1848 
induced  Lincoln's   first   visit 
to  Philadelphia,  48 
White,  Charles  T.,  upholds  Mer- 
win's    story    of    New    York 


INDEX 


325 


Central  offer  to  Lincoln,  131 
White,    Horace,    anecdote    about 

Lincoln,  139 
White,   Julius,    entertained   Lin- 
coln at  Evanston,  157 
Whitney,  Henry  C,  comment  on 
Legislature    of    which    Lin- 
coln was  member,  29 
opinion  as  to  Lincoln's  connec- 
tion   with    Illinois    Central, 
57 
stories  of  Lincoln  in  railroad 

suits,  65 
statement  about  Lincoln's  larg- 
est fee,  76 


comments  on  railroad's  treat- 
ment of  Lincoln  and  Doug- 
las, 136 

description  of  Lincoln,  165 
Wills,   David,   Lincoln's   host   at 
Gettysburg,  248,  262 

part  in   dedication   of  Gettys- 
burg battlefield,  247 
Wilson,   Robert  L.,  bill   regard- 
ing   track    gauge    of    Union 
Pacific,  222 

description  of  Lincoln,  22 
Wood,  W.  S.,  in  charge  of  Lin- 
coln's   trip    to    Washington, 
173 


